Changed Hearts

And last and late but not least...Megan's interim reflection blog post from her trip to the orphanage in Shaanxi province...

Getting off of the bus, you are greeted by bunches of smiling, yet uncertain faces. The children at the Duanmin Children’s Welfare Centre range in ages from a few years to seventeen years old. They are sometimes deprived of fun and interaction as the caretakers struggle to meet their daily needs, and they look forward to the hugs, smiles, and words from visitors. For four and a half days, we were immerged in the culture and family mindset surrounding the orphanage. It isn’t looked upon as a temporary place for children with special needs; rather, it is a home where the sisters who work there strive to make it a place of love, enjoyment, connection, and protection as the kids grow older. To spend even a short time there was a blessing, an insight, and a reminder.

The children stole my heart from the moment I arrived (leaving presented me with some of the most painful goodbye’s I’ve ever had to make). As I left, my mind filled with memories of the strong bonds we had formed over the short time we’d spent there...particularly to my time with Dang Tian Qiao, who is six years old. During an interim meeting at Concordia, I was matched up with her to be her special caretaker for the week we were there. I figured she would be a challenge because she is autistic and tends not to interact with others. However, God took my expectations and let them fall away slowly but surely when she took my hand, walked around with me, and sat with me. I spoke to her in my broken Chinese, knowing that she could not speak back, and my heart softened. She played with my hair, giggled, wanted me to hold her, and gestured where she wanted to be carried. For many other children, this would be no extraordinary event. But for Qiao Qiao, it was a step forward towards interaction with others, recognizing familiar faces, and building relationships.

The sound of her laugh as she played with me, as well as the sight of a smile on her sweet face, are memories that I will not soon be forgetting. They constantly come to mind, as they did when I kissed her on the head, told her goodbye, and cried over our departure from the orphanage for the last time. I have so many stories from interim, and I will treasure them in my heart and readily share them to make known the impact that can take place and the lives that can be changed—even if I was changed more than the children—with little more than a willing heart and God’s love.