Muy Bien, El Toro

We had the privilege today to visit Malambo Orphanage, which is one of the best orphanages in Panama. The orphanage was arranged more like a little village, with each building housing children of different ages. We divided into two teams; one group started with the "baby house" and another group started with the HIV house. The baby house included children from birth to 3 years old, and the children in the HIV house were ages 3-6. We were welcomed into the baby house immediately. All the toddlers were out of the porch to greet us as we walked in, and they began to climb all over us. We brought in soft animal puppets, which they all loved and took turns playing with. Our nursing student, Brittani, was able to find the baby room, and we were each able to go up individually and see the babies and hold the few that weren't napping. We played games, held the kids, and made them feel loved all morning until it was lunch time. Lisa found one little boy who seemed to just block out his surroundings, and she was able to get him to walk and laugh and enjoy just being a kid, despite it being obvious that he didn't do this very often. Stephanie did an awesome job with a couple of the little girls that we nicknamed "los monos" (or monkeys), because they thought each of us was their own personal jungle gym to climb and swing on. As they were preparing for lunch, Liz and I noticed that a little girl was brought out into the dining room and strapped into a high chair and left. The little girl had special needs, so we immediately asked if we could go over and see her. The nun allowed us to go over, and we were able to get our PT, Amy, to go with us to work with the little girl. Amy was extremely helpful in giving us all the information she could and showing us so many things we could do to help this little girl out. We spent a good 20 minutes doing therapy with her and holding her and making her feel loved, just like we had done with the other kids all morning. We don't know where she had been kept, but they only brought her and another girl with special needs out at lunch time. Finally, it was time to eat and all the children were brought in and put in high chairs or ate children's picnic tables to eat their rice and beans. We all took the time to feed some of the younger ones that needed assistance, and Amy was able to feed the girl with special needs. Watching Amy work with this little girl opened our eyes to the world of pediatric therapy, and it was sad to see how much potential this little girl had but may never reach because of her situation.
Meanwhile, at the HIV house, the other half of our students were busy entertaining a room full of energetic boys and girls. They played as many games as they could come up with, and brought out all the children's favorite toys. There was one little boy at this house who needed to use a walker to get around, but we had been warned that he refused to use it. The students tried hard all morning to get him to use it, but they couldn't get him to try, no matter how many times Melissa, Zach, and Nick showed him how much fun it could be. By the time those of us from the baby house got up to the HIV house, it was nearly time for lunch. We helped all the children wash up, and the little boy that needed the walker was the very last one. We set him down in front of his walker, which was only about 10 feet away from the lunch table, and he took off. We were all so ecstatic he walked on his own that we cheered and clapped for him, which made him blush of course. However, it was after lunch that the excitement began. While Zach worked with the little boy with the walker, and Dani entertained a few boys with a Hot Wheels track, Nick and Lisa were gearing up for a bull fight. Melissa played referee, and the children took their places on Lisa's and Nick's backs. Nick snorted and stomped a few times, and then he rammed Lisa and knocked her off balance. The little boy directing Nick made sure to let him know how proud he was of his performance by cheering out, "Muy bien el toro!" (or very good bull!). You can check out the live footage from this heated bull fight here. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10202885061154533&set=vb.1442442020&type=2&theater
Finally, it was naptime for these children as well, and although every single one of us was ready to join them, we took a quick break to grab lunch and then go down and see the older girls. Jordan was immediately ambushed by 3 or 4 little girls that clearly remembered the impact she made on them when she was here in the summer, and it was awesome to see how much she truly cares for these kids and how much they love her. Unfortunately, we weren't able to stay long, and far too soon it was time for us to leave. We said goodbye to everyone, and I know every single one of us has made a promise to ourselves to return at some point to visit the children again. Today was such an unforgettable experience because we were able to give all of these children the one thing they all desperately need, and that was love.
To sum up the emotions we all felt today and the experience we all had, I'll leave you all with my all-time favorite Bible verse, Corinthians 13:13. "And now these three remain, faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love."