IT IS OUR DAUGHTER CHRISTINE'S TURN TO HELP US TO RUN THE ORPHANAGE

It was a blessing that while Peggy and I were away from the orphanage, our eldest daughter Christine was having her school break and she made the initiative to take over the day to day activities upon managing the orphanage and the orphanage children. We are so thankful indeed. Christine was telling us that she is enjoying herself and she is looking forward for her to have her next school break to be spent at the orphanage again. For Christine, Tassya and Christian, the orphanage has been their destination for at least the last 10 years of their life. Here is what Christine wrote for her recent visit.

April Trip

This trip was as usual just like any other trip I’ve made before. It was full of laughter, shouting and screaming, amazing food, beautiful scenery, tickling each other and a lot of running all over the place.

My routine when I am over there is firstly getting up at a very ridiculous hour of the day, which is 5 in the morning. Yes, it is still dark outside. Then I would have to wake the kids up that are sleeping in my room with me, which varies from 7 to 12 people at a time, I have a tiny room over there, but the kids don’t mind. They would rather stuff themselves in tiny spaces and sleep in my room and be in my presence rather than sleeping in their usual bedroom halls. The kids I hang out with are between 3 to 12 years of age, and all of them are so beautiful in their own ways.  It really hits me hard when I know what kind of life they could have lived if it wasn’t for my parents’ orphanage. Their stories are so brutal and intense that I wouldn’t think they’d have a different life to where they each came from. For example, one of the kids called Jen Lasa (her mother has just been released out of jail in Timor and she was in there because she had murdered her husband as the husband was so abusive to her daily. It happened when the husband was sleeping). And Jen had just written me a little note for me to read on the plane (please note that she is only five years old). Her note reads:

“Jen adalah anak yang pintar, Jen mau bisa jadi orang yang berhasil karena bapa budi mama peggy mba itin mba tassya dan mas tian sudah mendukung Jen dan semua anak panti bisa berhasil semua. Tuhan Yesus memberkati yang membaca surat2 ini, Thank You”

-Jen Lasa

it means:

Jen is a clever girl, Jen wants to be a successful person because Budi, Peggy, Christine Tassya and Christian have supported me and the rest of the Orphanage children. Jesus Bless the ones who read this note, Thank You.

It just hits me hard because I’ve known most of these kids since they were a few days if not hours old. It makes me wonder what kind of mentality their pregnant mothers must have had to go through throughout their pregnancy and whether it will affect their unborn child later on in life, the decisions, the stress they’ve had to be put under.  But I have nothing to offer other than my time, sometimes I just sit there and think of what else I could possibly do to help my parents, who already are doing all that they can afford to do for now.

I thank God everyday for blessing me with such fantastic parents, they are such a good team, they love to help people. I remember them helping strangers since I was a little tiny girl. Whether it is a lost puppy, or a helper in need of something and just people on the roadside looking hungry, my mother use to just hand out money to people she thinks deserves, if not needs help.  Is there a gene in the human body that makes someone so susceptible to helping others, or is it the power of loving others? I am too young to figure out half the things I wish I knew. But I know my parents are both good people and I know they want the best for my siblings and I. They’re built this sanctuary for my siblings and I to go back to every time we can. And there is no better place in the world I could think of to spend my holiday. Teaching those kids new things, making them laugh, holding their hands. I could go on forever, there is so much to do at the orphanage if you have a will.  The feeling I get when I land at the airport in Kupang is just so amazing that I don’t know what I would do if it was ever taken away from me.

Moving on, after the early awakening, they would each get up and fold their blankets individually, the kids are very independent, they do everything for themselves, they know not to ask for something that is going to be a hassle for somebody else. I personally think they’re the most well behaved kids in the entire country. But of course, that’s because they have proven themselves so. Of course kids are going to be naughty, but the Roslin kids are naughty in a way that is different from normal kids. They don’t know much of what living in a city is like, so they behave almost like village kids. They laugh at the simplest humor and it makes me so happy to see their smiles, only because I’ve handed them a piece of cookie or a promise to go to the beach or something that is so simple, yet means so much to them.

The kids are driven to school on our mini bus it can hold about twenty kids or so in there, so the morning bus leaves at sic forty five latest to bring the older girls who are in high school ranging from 14 to 19 year olds.  They then get dropped off first; the high school and the primary school are about 500 metres away from each other. I of course ride along in the bus to take them to school and they always have to argue about who sits in front with me on the way and who sits with me on the way back when I pick them up later on in the day. I make two trips in the morning, the second trip is at nine thirty, and this is only for the younger ones from grade one and two.  And there are a few kids left at the orphanage who haven’t started going to school yet because they aren’t old enough.  My mum prepared for me three big boxes of photo copied coloring books, so I just cut them up into individual papers and pass them out one each with the coloring pencils, I wish I was still a kid again and just color all day.

Then around twelve thirty I have to go pick up the younger kids from the primary school. They usually sing songs on the way home, it takes about 10 minutes max for us to drive home, so its not far at all. Without the potholes on the road maybe it would take about 5 minutes.  

They come home and they have to change into their normal outfits and fold their uniforms into their individual cupboards. Then we play, we play all kinds of games, word search (which they absolutely LOVED ).

My brother have just undergone an open heart surgery, so I asked the kids to each write him a letter so I can post it over to Canada. They wrote the cutest letters with little drawings, lets just say they put a lot of effort in making them look pretty.

I don’t know why I love to go to the orphanage so much, because of course, like a normal human being, I do enjoy living in a city, with all the easy access to food, water, and the essentials to a somewhat luxurious life.  But I do much prefer to live in a village, where living is much simpler, instead of worrying about politics between colleagues or school mates, all I have to worry about is whether it is going to rain or not so we can play outside.

C.Soehardi

April 2011