A little bit about K

All orphanages are "bad" in the sense that if the world was such that families were able to remain intact, there would be no need for orphanages or other systems to care for children who are not able to grow up with their family. But, with that understood, some orphanages are definitely better places to be than others, whether it is due to funding, staffing, or other reasons. K has lived, since he was fourteen days old, in a place that, from what I have heard, and what I see in him and other children who live and have lived with him, is not a good place to be.

K is a little boy who has been severely neglected and malnourished for most of his life. He was born prematurely, and likely as a result of trauma at birth has cerebral palsy.  At eight years old (our most recent information), he is slightly shorter than our Reuben (currently 3.5 years old), and weighs the same as our one-year-old niece. That may be a slightly unfair comparison, because my sweet little niece is pretty chunky, but rather than making light of the situation, I think it helps put into perspective the degree to which this little guy has been deprived of what he needs. No eight year old boy should weigh only 22 pounds. I can't even fathom what life must be like for him on that factor alone!

On top of that, it is likely that our little boy has rarely been out of the crib in his room for the entirety of his eight year old life. Is it any wonder that he is now diagnosed as being "severely mentally retarded"? We have no way of knowing what his capacity to grow and learn will be once he gets home - how much permanent damage has been done? We have no way of knowing what he might have been capable of had he spent his years with a loving family instead of ignored in a badly-run institution. But we DO know that he will be loved here in a way that he has never been, and my most basic hope for him is that this boy, who according to his medical file, "rarely smiles," will have many reasons to smile.

Because we know that K is more than what his medical files are able to tell us. K is a little boy who was created by God in His image and he has incredible value not because of what he can do, but because of who made him. Our experiences with Reuben have completely changed the way we think of what a "blessing" is, and knowing that what God says is true, that children are a blessing, we eagerly await the blessing that K will be to our family.