Today was an amazing day! It started off with a very poor night's sleep, because I was so excited for today to begin. I tried going to bed early, 9:00, but woke up at 10:30, 12:00, 1:00, 2:00, 3:30, 4:00, 4:15, 4:25, 4:45, 5:00, 5:25, and at 5:45 I decided that was enough sleep, I might as well get up! I got ready in record time, double and triple checked my bag (which I packed and checked about 50 times last night) to make sure I had my passport and my green card, a water bottle, extra shoes, and a shawl in case I got cold, and left. I took the MRT, which I could not believe was standing room only at 6:30 am, to the northern side of the island to catch a bus to Malaysia. Of course, I was a little early, and Burger King wasn't even open yet, so I did what I do best, I wandered. The rest of the group showed up right on time, Burger King opened, we had a quick breakfast, and our adventure to Malaysia began.
First, we rode a bus to the checkpoint where we cued up to leave Singapore. They checked our passports, and since we had green cards, it was a breeze. We loaded back on the bus and crossed a 600 meter or so bridge, which took about 30-45 minutes. Then, we got back off the bus, and filled out our immigration papers to enter Malaysia, cued up again, and got another stamp in the passport. While we were waiting for everyone, I met a few other people who were coming with us. Some had been to the orphanage before, and for others (like me) it was the first time. After we were all through immigration, we wove through a mall, carpark, and street to a teksi (taxi) stand where we filled the first four taxis and headed to the children's home. Unfortunately I was in the first taxi, and we didn't know where we were going. Only one of us had been there before, and she had only been once. We eventually made it, and the real adventure began.
There are about 30 children living at Berkat Children's Home, some are orphans, and other come from bad home situations where it is not safe for them to be. They all live together as a family in a fairly small house with "mother" and "father." After being introduced to the children, we went with them to a nearby field where we played Frisbee, futball (soccer) and volleyball. I played with a little girl named Natasha. She was very sweet and craved attention and love. One of the other uncles there, Ho, turned everything into a learning experience, which was both good and bad. It got kind of old to have to do everything just right, and some of the children, including Natasha, decided it was easier not to play.
Tracy, one of the other teachers from my school, and her daughter Faith (6) had brought some paper, and sat in the shade making paper creations with the children. Overall, it was a time of laughing and getting to know one another. The only downside was the heat, which eventually drove us back to the house. It's amazing how much difference a ceiling fan, tile floor, and shade can make!
Before we could enjoy the coolness, we had to walk back from the field. I walked back with Mary (probably around 13) and Jennifer (9). As we were walking Mary asked me if I knew a song, which I didn't. She sang it for me, and we spent the rest of the trip singing back and forth. When we got back to the house, I taught Jennifer the memory verse song my kids have been learning in school. She wanted to know why it said numbers at the end, so I explained that those were the Bible reference, and showed her how to use it to find the words we had just sang in the Bible.
While we were singing, Uncle (or father) was ordering 20 pizzas to feed our clan. It was funny to listen to him on the phone. He kept saying "No, I want to order 20 pizzas." "No, I just ordered 20 pizzas to be delivered to my house....Yes, 20 pizzas." While we waited for the pizzas to arrive, we discovered the books. Jennifer, Daisy, Derrisa, Faith and I read until the pizzas arrived.
After lunch, we continued reading, periodically being interrupted by opportunities for the children to perform various songs and dances they have been learning. It was so much fun to cuddle these little girls and shower them with love and attention. The auntie and uncle that run the home do a great job, but they have a lot of kids to love, and it never hurts to have a little extra encouragement and attention.
The rest of the afternoon continued in similar manner. At one point, we invented a new game (I think) about chicks and Eagles. I was the mother hen, trying to protect my chicks from the Eagle that was trying to eat them. The little kids all held onto each other shirts behind me, and they ran as a line wherever I led them. I used myself to protect them from the Eagle that was trying to steal them away. It was a lot of fun, but I was wore out by the end.
At about 3:30 Raymond came back with the van and it was time to say goodbye. I hope to return soon to visit the children again. They were such a blessing to me.
(I'll write more later about the rest of my day in Malaysia, but for now, it's getting late, and I need a rest.)
Today was an amazing day! It started off with a very poor night's sleep, because I was so excited for today to begin. I tried going to bed early, 9:00, but woke up at 10:30, 12:00, 1:00, 2:00, 3:30, 4:00, 4:15, 4:25, 4:45, 5:00, 5:25, and at 5:45 I decided that was enough sleep, I might as well get up! I got ready in record time, double and triple checked my bag (which I packed and checked about 50 times last night) to make sure I had my passport and my green card, a water bottle, extra shoes, and a shawl in case I got cold, and left. I took the MRT, which I could not believe was standing room only at 6:30 am, to the northern side of the island to catch a bus to Malaysia. Of course, I was a little early, and Burger King wasn't even open yet, so I did what I do best, I wandered. The rest of the group showed up right on time, Burger King opened, we had a quick breakfast, and our adventure to Malaysia began.
First, we rode a bus to the checkpoint where we cued up to leave Singapore. They checked our passports, and since we had green cards, it was a breeze. We loaded back on the bus and crossed a 600 meter or so bridge, which took about 30-45 minutes. Then, we got back off the bus, and filled out our immigration papers to enter Malaysia, cued up again, and got another stamp in the passport. While we were waiting for everyone, I met a few other people who were coming with us. Some had been to the orphanage before, and for others (like me) it was the first time. After we were all through immigration, we wove through a mall, carpark, and street to a teksi (taxi) stand where we filled the first four taxis and headed to the children's home. Unfortunately I was in the first taxi, and we didn't know where we were going. Only one of us had been there before, and she had only been once. We eventually made it, and the real adventure began.
There are about 30 children living at Berkat Children's Home, some are orphans, and other come from bad home situations where it is not safe for them to be. They all live together as a family in a fairly small house with "mother" and "father." After being introduced to the children, we went with them to a nearby field where we played Frisbee, futball (soccer) and volleyball. I played with a little girl named Natasha. She was very sweet and craved attention and love. One of the other uncles there, Ho, turned everything into a learning experience, which was both good and bad. It got kind of old to have to do everything just right, and some of the children, including Natasha, decided it was easier not to play.
Tracy, one of the other teachers from my school, and her daughter Faith (6) had brought some paper, and sat in the shade making paper creations with the children. Overall, it was a time of laughing and getting to know one another. The only downside was the heat, which eventually drove us back to the house. It's amazing how much difference a ceiling fan, tile floor, and shade can make!
Before we could enjoy the coolness, we had to walk back from the field. I walked back with Mary (probably around 13) and Jennifer (9). As we were walking Mary asked me if I knew a song, which I didn't. She sang it for me, and we spent the rest of the trip singing back and forth. When we got back to the house, I taught Jennifer the memory verse song my kids have been learning in school. She wanted to know why it said numbers at the end, so I explained that those were the Bible reference, and showed her how to use it to find the words we had just sang in the Bible.
While we were singing, Uncle (or father) was ordering 20 pizzas to feed our clan. It was funny to listen to him on the phone. He kept saying "No, I want to order 20 pizzas." "No, I just ordered 20 pizzas to be delivered to my house....Yes, 20 pizzas." While we waited for the pizzas to arrive, we discovered the books. Jennifer, Daisy, Derrisa, Faith and I read until the pizzas arrived.
After lunch, we continued reading, periodically being interrupted by opportunities for the children to perform various songs and dances they have been learning. It was so much fun to cuddle these little girls and shower them with love and attention. The auntie and uncle that run the home do a great job, but they have a lot of kids to love, and it never hurts to have a little extra encouragement and attention.
The rest of the afternoon continued in similar manner. At one point, we invented a new game (I think) about chicks and Eagles. I was the mother hen, trying to protect my chicks from the Eagle that was trying to eat them. The little kids all held onto each other shirts behind me, and they ran as a line wherever I led them. I used myself to protect them from the Eagle that was trying to steal them away. It was a lot of fun, but I was wore out by the end.
At about 3:30 Raymond came back with the van and it was time to say goodbye. I hope to return soon to visit the children again. They were such a blessing to me.
(I'll write more later about the rest of my day in Malaysia, but for now, it's getting late, and I need a rest.)
No comments:
Post a Comment