At times being at the river community has been discouraging, you begin to wonder if you are actually a help or a hindrance. We have realized that the more you give some people the more they take and the less grateful they become, it becomes an expectation instead of an appreciation. After much thought we have decided to keep going to the river and to keep loving on the children. It is always going to be hard to break a cycle of life and it is not something which is possible in a short period of time. I think sometimes you have to lay aside the big picture and concentrate on the now, what you can do in the moments that you have- or else in some cases nothing will ever begin. Every child deserves to experience love and to have some positive role models in their life even if it is for just a short time. Simply showing them right from wrong, disapproving of fighting, insisting on respect and showing them how to treat one another carries value and shows them that there is another way.
The heartbreaking part is that as soon as you leave your reinforcements of love and respect are replaced by another way of life. For example as I mentioned earlier we are constantly telling the children not to fight. Last week after we left the parents and grandparents marked out a fighting ring and put two of the little children inside, Tito and Manuel who are ages three and four. They forced the children to fight, the adults were laughing and cheering. Manuel took a few blows from Tito and then began crying his eyes out in pain, the grandfather marched over and began yelling and shouting at little Manuel, instructing him that men do not cry. The rest of the parents including Manuel’s mother carried on laughing and jeering for more fighting.
At times like this you feel so powerless and out of your depth. You question if there is any point to what you are doing. You have to believe that there is, you have to keep hoping and planting seeds of truth in their lives, which one-day you pray will bloom and blossom producing fruit of their own.
Making salt dough
Inside the Rancho playing with the salt dough- the kids loved this.
Kaylor eating the salt dough
Kaylor eating a crayon (this is a daily occurrence)
Tito, Kaylor and I playing with my camera
Rob and Brian coloring
More coloring in the rancho
group hug..... group tackle
Kaylor being adorable as always
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