end of week #1

ok, so I don't have much time at the computer right now.. so I'm just gonna tell a few stories.
I was at the daycare center a few days ago playing around with the kids outside and this little boy (whom I will refer to as Adam) was lying on the grass daydreaming.. it was very cute :) Anyway another boy who was feeling a little like roughhousing went over and pinned Adam down on the grass. It was all very normal childs play, but Adam started to cry.. sort of a moan. He wasn't in pain or anything, he kinda sounded like he was pleading for the other boy to get off and when he did, Adam just kept sobbing. I've seem kids cry before, but this was totally different..
the other kids looked at him and seemed to understand what was happenning.. and then I realised what was going on. Many of these kids come to Mother of Peace with a history of abuse.. physical abuse, sexual abuse, abandonment... etc. So I realised that when Adam was pinned down it brought back all his traumatic memories of being helpless as he was forced down.. it was so heartbreaking. I just kinda rocked him and sang to him till it passed.
ok next story. every month, the kids have a party to celebrate any birthdays they might have had within the 4 weeks, but there hasn't been one since january. so we threw one of saturday! The kids had so much fun :) I put the pictures up from the party in this entry. Anyway, during the party I met Kim, the resident nurse. She knows everything about everyone and she was telling me some of the stories of the children and how they got here.. most come from townships which are like shanty towns. Its the poorest of the poor.. zinc roofs, overcrowded.. no electricity or running water... the abuse of women and children are very high.
She told me stories of how some of the children come to MOP in really bad shape.. some have been severely abused by their mothers, other have been raped multiple times.. but she said that within a few days she'll see them running around playing with the other kids because they feel safe within the walls of MOP. It's like their sanctuary and they really flourish.
I'm so grateful to have been exposed to all of this, I'm learning so much!
The kids teach me their games and the language and the dances and I give them all the love I can muster up! It's working well so far :)
ok that's all I have time for!
p.s. School's still on strike and we can't organise outings for the kids because if they all go out on the bus at once, it'll look like a school outing and the children might be attacked by strikers...

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