Orientation and Our First Day At Agape

*A LONG blog post from June 2^nd (still catching up!)*

Thursday (May 31^st) was our orientation at Agape with Laura. We spent several hours talking and learning about how Agape operates, the kids at Agape, the group of kids we will be working with, and different rules and regulations. We also spent a lot of time discussing HIV/AIDS, ways to prevent receiving the disease, and just getting more educated about the disease in general. Laura reminded us that HIV can be spread three major ways: sexually, blood and mother-to-child. There have been no reported cases of spread HIV through normal social contact including cuddling, kissing, sharing utensils that are washed in the normal manner, bathing, or changing diapers. It was also very encouraging to hear how, because of new medical and technological advances, people are now just living with HIV/AIDS as oppose to dying from it. It was amazing to see how hard the Agape staff works to keep their facility safe and clean for the children who call it home. We learned about hand-washing and disinfecting procedures, and how we can protect our selves from unwanted germs. We had a great afternoon learning about Agape and how everything operates. 

Our First day at Agape

Humbled. Blessed. Honored. Amazed. In awe.

 

Those are just a few words that only begin to describe my first day at Agape; one of the best days of my life. 

June 2nd was a much anticipated and prayed over day that I had been looking forward to for many months. Emily, Rachel and I woke up at 7am that morning and after our quiet time, we hopped on our bikes for the 15 minute bike ride to Agape. As we rode up the long Agape Home driveway at 7:45am for the 8am-5pm weekend shift, I could barely contain my excitement. We parked our bikes and walked into our play room where eight 1-3 year olds greeted us. When I say greeted us, I mean they dropped everything they were doing and rushed us, all at the same time. The were hugging us, touching our hair, and wanting to sit in our laps and hold our hands. It was the sweetest, most heart warming moment I have ever experienced. I immediately fell in love with each and everyone of them and knew from that moment on, I would never want to leave.


The rest of the day was filled with joy and challenges as we tried to learn the children's schedules. Only one of the nannies speaks a little English, and she was only with us for the first few minutes in the morning, so we had to learn what was going on by closely observing and taking mental notes. Laura told us that in the past, there has always been an overlap between the old volunteers and the incoming ones, so that the new volunteers had someone to show them the kids schedule and how the different nannies operated. That didn't happen this summer, so we got to hit the ground running; but I would not have it any other way! The nannies were all very sweet and patience with us, and even though we couldn't communicate with words, I would say that we have all improved our Charade skills, with all of our pointing and hand signals. :) The kids have been a huge help too! Even though they are so young, they know their schedule! They would show us were things were or take our hands and pull us to where we were going next...It was amazing! 

Our work schedule is five days on two days off. During the weekends we work 8am-5pm and  during the week, we work the "split shift" from 6am-9am and then 4pm-8pm. We have a large break in the middle of the day because after the devotion and worship service (from 8-8:30am), the children go to a little preschool/Kindergarten for a few hours (on Agape's campus) and then they take a nap. Young children with HIV/AIDS require a lot of sleep, so our kids can take up to a three hour nap. They are pretty much allowed to sleep until they wake up. They also take long naps because they are woken up about four times in the middle of the night to get their diapers changed, so many of the children do not get a full nights rest. The orphanage only uses cloth diapers and children with HIV/AIDS have very sensitive skin. A minor diaper rash could be very harmful and painful.

The children that we look after, "The Crazy 8" as Becca has dubbed them, are the main group of kids that we have the privilege of caring for this summer. We have four boys and four girls. The boys are Pon-Pon, Suradech (Sur-a-deck), Aduwat (Ah-doo-wat) and Tom (Tome). The girls are Julie, Naomi, Pichamon (Peach-a-mon), and Prontip. I love each of these children so much and cannot wait to spend more time with them. They have truly stolen my heart and I can't wait till I get to see them again! We are allowed to post pictures of the kids, however we are not allowed to put their names with their photos. We also decided that we will not be bringing our cameras for the next few weeks because we want the kids and nannies to get to know us and gain more trust in us before we rush in with cameras. :) Until then here are a few photos Becca took on her phone. 

Thank you for reading and thank you for your prayers!