MY TRIP TO LUOYANG, CHINA
May 28th through June 13, 2000
I returned a few days ago... Having only experienced jet lag the last time we went to China the exhaustion has once again taken me by surprise. As with adopting our daughter I would say the jet lag is well worth it. We met the most amazing children at the Luoyang Children's Welfare Institute.
With so much modern technology at our fingertips why does it take so much effort to reach the other side of the planet? From Dulles (near DC) to Chicago, from Chicago to Japan, from Japan to Beijing, China... Oh and let us not forget the blessed layovers... With each obstacle our mission team of 30 people (who had hardly met before) became a unit of friends and then family...
In Beijing we were able to get in a bit of siteseeing before heading onto Luoyang. We visited the usual "must see" sites, The Forbidden City and of course The Great Wall of China. These places I had seen before and do suggest if at all possible you not miss The Great Wall. We saw other famous places in those 2 days but all we really wanted to do was meet the children of Luoyang and get on with the business at hand.
How to get to Central China? We opted for the train... Horror stories about China's railways were told but in all honesty it was far nicer than any USA train I have had the pleasure of riding. As world travelers go we were all still a bit soft early on in our trip and we opted for soft beds. Four people to a closet sized room, 2 bunks on either side. In our room we talked until the wee hours, sharing our lives and becoming better friends. There were even western bathrooms available! (Some didn't know this and tried their best to aim for the hole in the floor on the moving beast!)
When we reached our destination there was a 2 hour bus ride to Luoyang. Guess what? We got a flat tire! This initially seemed like an inconvenience but turned out to be one of our favorite moments. As the bus driver made his way slowly to a tire changing station we noticed a pile of tires on the side of the road. These looked worse than the tire that had blown. As we waited on the bus we noticed a crowd forming. Amongst the crowd was a lady with a little boy. These people had not experienced Americans before and looked quite poor. The little boy about one year old stole our hearts. Soon we were passing out cookies, toys and treats to our new friends from outside the bus windows. Friendship expressed without words...
We were able to spend a week with the children of the Luoyang Orphanage. This was almost a sacred privilege. A road untraveled by most. The atmosphere was unlike any we'd ever encountered before and yet the faces of the children quite familiar. Sometimes the bleakness of the institution seemed dreary, stark and hopeless... Other times I saw great hope and the love of a family. For truly this is their family. All the children are given the same last name "Dang" and so in many ways they are brothers and sisters. The nannies are their moms. It's not perfect, there are more children than can possibly be taken care of. The orphanage is understaffed. With the Chinese government only able to offer 12$ a month per child it is no wonder. But still I saw caring from the nannies, I saw the children's eyes search out for the ones who hold, feed and care for them. The older children who have grown up from infants there take care of the little ones far better than any true siblings I have witnessed.
During our week at Luoyang, we got to spend much time with the children. Our first day there they performed for us songs and demonstrated some Kung Fu. The next day we were able to spend time with the children (ages newborn to 18 years as this is a "special needs" orphanage) in their normal environment. I had the pleasure of working in three special needs classes. I taught them some songs, played games and showed them my puppets; later I went upstairs to show my monkey puppet to the toddler class and made half of them cry! I don't believe they had seen a puppet before and one little boy thought for sure it was real.
On the third day we rolled up our sleeves for some projects that needed to be done. We sanded, painted and cleaned the 2 floors that needed it most. One of our duties was cleaning 4 bathrooms (no pun intented--okay so it was intended...) This was quite difficult for us as they looked as if they'd never seen bleach before. We did the best we could and I was quite proud of the way my team members rolled up their sleeves, sported plastic gloves, face masks and got to work. The squat toilets didn't look much better after 2 days work but at least they smelled better! Air conditioners were set up, a playground set donated and a industrial sized Maytag washer on it's way. (All donated from ACAA and other private donations from those who care.)
By the end of our week the place looked a bit better with a fresh coat of pink paint and a few of the comforts of life we take for granted. Still with so many children in an institution... The pink paint on the walls of an institution setting didn't change the place much... I do apologize if I seem cynical for I am not. I just want you to get a picture in your mind, a picture of children their parents could not or did not want to keep. Many children had cleft lips and pallets, some were missing limbs, others retarded, blind and or deaf. In the midst of them were average children simply there due to China's one child policy. Each child there is a precious gift from God, each one unique and as special as any of our children, in some ways even more so. For certainly we gave to the 167 children there but they in turn gave way more back to us. I saw children who have nothing, give more to each other than we in blessed America ever give to each other.
One girl named Miao Miao is 15 but she is no bigger than a 9 year old due to a severely deformed spine. If you gave her anything to eat she'd find a little one and give most of it to them. Once I had a piece of trash next to my camera bag. She asked me if she could throw it away for me. (Mostly through signing or my little Chinese or her limited English) Upon discovering a small piece of a granola bar left in the wrapper she found a little one to give that to. They waste nothing, we waste too much. This was a peek into Miao Miao's heart and life. I wish I could help her somehow. Once you are over 13 it is too late for adoption. How can we help these special children? My daughter Jessie had given me a prized possession of hers to give to a special child. It was an animated key chain, with pink bunnies jumping rope. I gave it to Miao Miao, it was the only thing she didn't part with. Jessie was so pleased.
One special morning we got to take some of the children to the park and then back to our hotel for a buffet lunch. It was a treat to see the children pile their plates high and go back for seconds and thirds. One precious little boy had 3 plates piled high with watermelon! We needed to change back into our work clothes after lunch so a feisty, little, deaf girl came up to up to the room Tina (my roomate and now friend) and I shared. I showed her the bathroom thinking it had been sometime since she had gone. She looked at it blankly, as if to say, "What am I supposed to do with that thing?" (She had obviously never seen a western toilet) I demonstrated, she cracked up and proceeded to use the sit upon toilet for the first time ever. Children learn so quickly and they forgive so much. Will you open your heart to one of these little ones?
Yes we did see the rows of potty chairs, but they were painted a bright green and a few toys dangled from them... (The children are potty trained early to save time, the only washing machine at the orphanage was the old-fashioned ringer type!) Yes the babies diapers were no more than pieces of cloth tied on with a thin rope but the nannies seemed to change them often. No it's not perfect but we saw the workers do the best they could with limited means and staff.
I guess I could go on forever but suffice it to say we all fell in love with all the children of the Luoyang Orphanage. Each of us longed to bring one or two home with us. One little 3 month old boy with a missing left hand stole my heart. Had I been able to simply leave the orphanage with him in my arms he'd be with me even now. How about you? We have so much in the way of material goods here in America. Those 167 children taught me more in a week than I have learned in 38 years. Please pray about opening your hearts, homes or at least your wallets to the orphans of China. Contact America-China Adoption Association to get more information. Go to the link on my home page or call them at: 800-429-3369. (If you are unable to adopt could you help someone financially who wants to? All donations are tax deductible.)
Thank you for spending your time reading our story. Millions of children reside in orphanages in China. Most of the children are girls but there are many boys too, some with special needs, all with hearts as big as China!
Thank you to all my teammates who have been forever changed by this trip. You all feel more like family to me now. You too have a special place in my heart.
Thank you to the director of the Luoyang Orphanage. You are a good man who is doing a fine job as director--you really seem to care about the children who reside there... He remarked that he will charge his staff to love and treat the children who live there as we did. To touch them more, hug them more, love them more... He took note of our hard work and dedication to the children of the orphanage. (Most of us did it for the love our Savior has shown to us. For we too have been adopted into the family of God. Have you room for adoption in your hearts?)
Sincerely in the Savior,
Donna Sheron
"With knowledge comes responsibility, with wisdom comes pain. I have reached the mountaintop, it's hard to breath up here..."
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