GongYi Home of Hope

Last month we brought in “Lydia” Kan Lin Lin and she is doing really well at the Home of Hope. She is excelling in school and has learned so quickly to join in with the other children. Had some problems with bad language in the beginning but has quickly learned that is not the right way to talk. She has taken up with “Holly” and “Julie” and says she is so happy that we found her! She is showing rapid signs of learning to like affection, which is usually a slow process.

This week we brought in little “Michael” Yang Wen Bo, a little two and a half year old. (We aren’t exactly sure of his age as we don’t have all his village records yet.)

When we first arrived at his house, the lady who has cared for him for the last couple of years carried him out to meet us. “Michael” Yang Wen Bo seemed a little bewildered, as I would expect him to be. There was a lot of curiosity at this strange looking person who had come to his house. He had never seen a foreigner before. Unlike in the United States where it is common to see people from all races and nationalities, it is a true rarity to see a foreigner except in the major cities in China.

After taking a few pictures and talking to the lady and some of the neighbors about the history of little “Michael” Yang Wen Bo, we loaded him in the car and began our hour and a half drive back to the Home of Hope. It isn’t the distance that makes it take so long but the conditions of the road in this particular mountain area. Narrow, unpaved roads with sheer drop offs on the edges in many places.. rather breathtaking at times and not always because of the beauty! <grin>

Normally we have some difficulty trying to pick a good English name to give the children. In this case it was not difficult at all. For some reason as soon as I started taking his pictures and talking to him and the neighbors I decided he had to be a “Michael”. He did not show as much timidity and bashfulness as most of these children do when they first see a foreigner. He sort of took to us all right away.

We found out that little “Michael’s” father was killed in a quarry accident a short time after he was born. Often when this kind of thing happens the widow finds herself in a very difficult situation and they will leave to find marriage elsewhere (usually just for survival) and generally simply tell their baby good bye for the last time. That is what happened to “Michael” Yang Wen Bo. The lady who has been caring for him is called an Aunt but that term has many meanings in China and it is really difficult to say if she is a blood relative or not.

After a long drive home we got “Michael” Wen Bo into a hot shower, some clean clothes and new tennis shoes. We showed him his new bed and introduced him to some of his dorm brothers. He seemed real curious about all of this but didn’t show any signs of fear or worry and was very obedient through the whole ordeal. He has had all his vaccinations and shots now and has started settling into his new life at the Home of Hope.

“Luke” and “Jenny” are both really happy to have a younger brother. Now they are not the “babies” any more — they can be the Boss sometimes!