Actually, her full name is "Queen Pauleen" but usually she is referred to as "Pau Pau" (sounds like "pow pow"). Pauleen is five years old and is absolutely adorable! She came to the NFFCH about two years ago along with the other Marikina Orphanage group (Aira, Jerald, Jaypee, Jessica, and Jan Andrei). She was only three years old when she first came, and spent the first chunk of her time here in the nursery.
At four years old she moved to be with the "big kids" and has pretty much held her own since. And the main reason would definitely be her brother Jan Andrei. Big brother Jan looks out for his sister Pauleen! I don't think there is a sibling set in the whole children's home closer than these two! Jan and Pauleen love to spend time together and are always looking out for one another! One of my favorite memories of Pauleen comes from my first month here in Manila. Her brother Jan was being punished and she kept coming into the room with her hands on her hips, exclaiming in her tiny little voice "Where's Jan?!" She just wanted to make sure he was okay!
Pauleen is in kindergarten at our community school and is working hard to practice her speech, which she struggles with. Her sentences don't always come together correctly (in English or Tagalog) and often says words that sound similar to the actual word she's wanting to say, but are just a little off. It took me a long time to even notice this, because she doesn't talk very much to begin with. Pauleen likes to play! She's always running around the home, dripping sweat, with no time to slow down and have a conversation.
I guess the best word I could use to describe Pauleen is sweet. She just has a precious face, with an adorable little voice, a darling smile, and a cute little giggle. She is as cute as a button and a joy to have at the children's home.
Please keep little Pau Pau in your prayers this week. Pray for her speech development, pray for her physical, mental, and spiritual development, and pray that she and her brother would be blessed by a family that loves them and cares for them and calls them their own. And of course that Pauleen would grow to understand the message of Christ and have a relationship with Him.
Enjoy the video and God bless!
Special Note about the Video: Since Pauleen doesn't speak very much, along with her shy nature, she wasn't really into the whole answering questions thing I usually do. So instead, the video is mostly pictures and some clips of her playing. I hope you still enjoy!
Gerald is 9 years old and is part of the largest family at the NFFCH: Aira (Jeralyn), Jessica, and Jaypee. As mentioned before, this family has been living at an orphanage for a very long time (at least 6 years!), the last 2 of which have been at NFFCH. Along with his older sister Aira, Gerald is a first grade student at our community school... and he is a very diligent, hard working student! I might even go so far as to say that Gerald is my "best student." What I mean by that, is that he always works hard, always follows the rules, never complains, never tries to sneak in extra computer games, and does very well at typing lessons. He is a pleasure to have in class!
Gerald is a very quiet kid. At the home and at the school, I rarely hear him talking. I think he prefers to express himself through other means: a smile, a belly laugh, or crying... those are Gerald's top three emotions! Whenever I spot Gerald I wait and stare at him until we've made eye-contact. And soon as that happens, he flashes me his big, front-teeth missing grin! I know I can always count on him for a nice big smile!
Gerald always obeys the staff and volunteers. He listens well and helps whenever needed. It's the other kids that he tends to have a problem with! It is a daily occurance to see Gerald scrunched up in a corner crying about one of the other kids. Whenever someone takes a toy, beats him in basketball, doesn't let him join playing, or rubs him the wrong way... there will be Gerald crying!
Please keep Gerald in your prayers throughout the week. Pray for him and his family at the home. Pray for his development physically, mentally, and spiritually. And most importantly, pray that Gerald would understand and accept Jesus in his heart. Thank you!
And here is Alex! (Alexandra technically but I don't think I've ever called her that).
Alex is 8 years old and the oldest of two other siblings: Tyra (3) and Chris John (2). In other words, she is part of one of my *cough* favorite *cough* families around. As I mentioned in Tyra's blog, I was in Manila visiting the day that these three came to the New Faith Family Children's Home just over a year ago. Tyra was a little scared but also too young to completely understand what was going on and little Chris was completely oblivious. But Alex understood. And I will never forget when I saw her sitting backwards on the couch, peeking over the other side. I thought she was playing with one of the babies, who was trying to wiggle their way into this small space. But she wasn't playing, she was quietly crying to herself, trapped in a room full of people, devastated at what had just happened. She understood her mother had just dropped them off and said goodbye.
Alex spent the first few weeks staying pretty close to her siblings, who were both in the nursery. She would come up every chance she got, rather than spend a lot of time with the other older kids. But over time, she has adjusted pretty well. She loves playing with the other girls her age, but she also loves her siblings, and this is apparent as you watch her hug and kiss them every chance she gets, and is always helping Tyra on the swings, running around outside, or helping to feed her at meal time. Alex is a very loving and caring Ate (older sister).
Alex also has another characteristic you might notice quite easily... *** ** ** **ubborn as a mule! Once Alex has set her mind to something, she will stick to it regardless of the consequences. If she is fighting over a toy with one of the other kids... good luck prying that toy out of her hands! The consequences rarely convince her to give up either; she would just rather be right than give up the argument (and avoid the punishment that accompanies).
Alex is also working hard to advance academically in our community school. She was probably not educated (or not very well) before coming to K.I.M., so she is currently still in kindergarten class; though with her hard work ethic, we expect her to move up to first grade in no time at all!
Please be praying for Alex this week. Pray for her hard work to pay off in school, pray for quality time with her siblings, pray for healing from all the wounds in her past, pray for her sometimes stubborn attitude!, and pray for her heart to be open to the message of Jesus Christ. And also be praying for a wonderful family to come into the lives of these three blessings: Alex, Tyra, and Chris. They deserve a loving, caring, and Godly family.
I know, I know... I've said this several times before... but man is this boy gwapo! (handsome) He just has one of those faces that allow him him to get away with things... all it takes is one look at that face and you melt just enough to say it's okay, you're not in trouble, just don't do it again...
Florence is nine years old and is the youngest of three siblings. He has an older sister Roseanne (13) and an older brother Fritz (10). Florence is also a first grader at our community school.
Florence is one of the children at the home that I still feel like I haven't gotten to know very well. It's not that Florence isn't friendly, just that he prefers to spend his time with his peers, rather than the volunteers. On any given day, you can spot Florence running around the home with the other younger boys, playing tag or basketball, climbing trees, and doing other things that little boys like to do!
If you stick around long enough, you might be so lucky to see the Florence "pouty face" ...when things aren't going his way, and he gets a little grumpy, the bottom lip goes out, the eyelids come down, and his arms fold across his chest. I call it the Florence pouty face. The only problem is... he still looks so gwapo even when he's mad!
For the month of November, along with his two siblings and another child from our home, Florence participated in a "camp" where he spent 3 weeks in Southern California. The trip of a lifetime for such a small boy from the Philippines. Other than traveling to our sister children's home in Mindanao, it was his first time really traveling! We were all very excited for him to have such a neat adventure and expand his view of the world!
This week I am asking that you keep Florence in your prayers! Pray that God would provide a family for this sweet boy and his siblings. Pray that he would be growing physically, mentally, and spiritually. Pray that he always feels loved and cared for. Pray for his family, wherever they might be. And as always, pray that Florence would know Christ as his personal Saviour.
I live at the Yun Jin Lyso Ministry Center (YMC for short). I live ten
minutes from the nearest mall and nearest starbucks. There's a mini
stop convenient store less than a mile from my door, and several "sari
sari" convenient stores less than 30 yards away. The movies, malls,
bowling centers, spas, and grocery stores are all within a short
driving distance from where I call home. I live in a city and access to
"things" is pretty easy.
Which
sometimes makes it hard to remember what else is right outside the
door. I live in the Cuatro Community, named so for the location
alongside the 4th hole of a neighboring golf course. Cuatro is home to
5,000 people (and no, it's not that
big of an area.) Those 5,000 people live in about 800ish homes, packed
in to little shanty houses like sardines. They live in the dirt, they
sleep in the dirt, and they don't have three hot meals waiting for them
throughout the day.
This
morning, Manny, a young boy that has heavily weighed on my heart since
I came here, was found wandering around by one of our teachers at the
school, when he himself was supposed to be in class up at the CCC, our
other school location. We brought him inside and asked him why he
wasn't at school. One of the common excuses we hear from students-- his
uniform was dirty, so he couldn't go to class.
Manny
is 7 years old. And as I look into his story more and more, it feels as
though it keeps getting more and more hopeless. Manny is the eldest of
his siblings. He has a 6 year old sister and a 3 year old brother.
Either both his parents are dead, or the the mother is dead and the
father leaves Monday through Friday to go to work in another province,
we have heard both stories and are not sure which is the truth yet.
Regardless, this little boy is 7 years old, trying to take care of his
siblings, trying to be the man in the family, while only just a little
boy himself. He collects paper and plastic at the school each day to
turn into the recycling center for money. A large bag will get him 10
pesos, or about a quarter. He told us he needed to get money to buy
rice for the family.
My heart breaks for this boy. I want more
for him than how he is living right now. I want him to be a kid and for
an adult to do the providing and the caring. I want him to continue
going to school, to learn English, continue on to college, and go
places in this life! I want him to come to church and bible class on
Sundays, to learn about God the Father, who is the Father figure he has
never known but always needed, the Father that won't let him down and
will always be there for him. I want him to have three meals a day,
vitamins to keep him healthy, strong and sturdy teeth, and a place that
he can feel safe each night.
What can I do for Manny? Or
Angela? Sunshine and Sanjie and their family? For Pin? These are just a
few of the many kids that need help. What can I do to help them? How
can I help to break them out of this cycle that they are in?
When
my time in Manila has come to an end, and I go back to my home in
California, Manny WILL NOT be in the exact same place as when I came.
Though at times I feel helpless, and the situation feels hopeless,
something will change. It has to.
Aira is a very sweet ten year old girl, who is currently in grade one at our community school. She performs very well academically and other than fairly recently, doesn't tend to have many attitude problems either. I personally have enjoyed having her in computers; I don't think I've ever had any problems with her in class.
Aira is the oldest of three other siblings: Gerald (9), Jessica (7), and Jaypee (6). (The family does kind of have a "J" theme, Aira included-- her real name is Jeralyn!) These four siblings have lived at an orphanage for at least six years, although I am not sure of exactly how long. Before coming to live at NFFCH, they lived at another children's home nearby. Aira and Jessica are extremely close sisters, and as I mentioned in Jessica's blog, even prefer sleeping in a twin bed together rather than have their own beds. They are always looking out for each other too; whenever the kids are given snack, candy, etc... Aira always makes sure Jessica gets some and vice-versa.
During play-time at the children's home, Aira can usually be seen playing with Angelica and Jessica. She enjoys playing hopscotch, jacks, reading books, and running around being silly. This may sound strange... but I would say that Aira is one of our quietest and loudest kids at the home. Although she seems quiet and reserved at first, and has her moments being that way... she also has an abnormally loud voice (for such a tiny body), and usually needs to be reminded to talk a little quieter.
Aira is a very generous, helpful, and sweet young girl. She is always a pleasure to have around and could sit on your lap for hours asking questions about every topic under the sun! She also has a great sense of humor and can keep me laughing pretty good!
Keep Aira in your prayers this week. Pray for her and all her siblings, and that God would provide a family for the four of them, despite the hard odds of 4 siblings being adopted. Pray for her development and progression into the preteen years. And most importantly, pray that she would hear, understand, and accept the message of the Gospel in her heart.
And this week I get to introduce you to.... Michael!
Michael is actually the first child who came to be a part of the NFFCH, over four years ago. Like many children here, I don't know Michael's full story, but I know he came from a difficult background. Now Michael is 7 years old and is in grade one at our community school. In fact, we were just recently told that Michael is the smartest student in his class! And it came to no surprise to us, because Michael really is an extremely intelligent kid! In addition to academics, Michael also does well in typing class and piano lessons. At his young age he has already learned how to read music!
Michael is a pretty independent kid as well. For the most part, Michael is pretty content playing by himself rather than the other boys. Every now and then he joins in with the other kids his age, but usually you will see him by himself at the home. He likes to climb trees, play basketball, play with toy cars, practice his writing, read books, and eat candy. He also has become quite close to our nurse and volunteer Marilyn, and enjoys spending time with her at the home as well. It takes a while to get to know MIcheal, because he doesn't just trust anyone that walks into this place. Michael likes to keep his distance while getting to know people. But once you've passed the test, you will quickly see that Michael is a sweet and tender-hearted boy.
Please remember to spend some time praying for Michael this week. Pray for continued healing from his hurtful past, pray for opportunities to exercise his musical talent and academic skills, pray that Michael would feel loved and cared for by the volunteers and staff, pray that he would know Christ as his personal Saviour, and pray that God would provide a family for this awesome young boy.
Rene is a very intelligent young man. At fifteen years old (just had his birthday yesterday the 29th), Rene is our oldest boy in the home. He is also our most advanced student in the school, about to finish his 5th grade year and move on to 6th grade.
Rene has a lot of things he's interested in. Rene likes to play basketball of course. He's always out on the court with the other boys! And has recently begun lifting weights with one of our male volunteers here and has enjoyed that as well. He also likes to help out with our maintenance workers at times, digging, laying cement, and other hard work. Rene, like many teenage boys, also likes to sleep-- and would sleep in pretty late if we let him! And Rene has also expressed a great interest in engineering/architecture. He is extremely smart, with his favorite subjects being math and science, and would be very good in that line of work!
Rene tends to be pretty quiet. It's not that he is shy; just that he chooses not to talk as much, depending on who he is around. While in his element, hanging out with the boys, Rene opens up a lot more and likes to play around with them. But when he gets in a larger crowd, or with the many volunteers who come to visit K.I.M, Rene pretty much keeps to himself. Rarely will you see him hanging out with visitors; he just keeps doing his thing... playing basketball and hanging out with his boys.
Rene is only 3 years from officially becoming an adult and moving on into the world to start a career/trade and become more and more self-sufficient. Please pray for Rene as he begins to look forward to that time. Pray that he would have patience and contentment with where he is now, but feel guidance for the future. Pray for Rene as he soon begins the 6th grade and will soon be on his way to high school! (grades 7-10 here). Pray for protection for Rene from the negative influences that loom just outside the gate of the home, and pray for Spiritual understanding and discernment as Rene has struggled to understand Christianity, right vs. wrong, sin, and a handful of other Christian concepts. Pray that the Lord would speak to him and that he would have a true relationship of Christ as his Saviour.
And this week you get to meet another girl that has become quite special to me during my time here... Vanessa!
Vanessa is the oldest of the girls, 14 years old, and is definitely the most mature as well. When at the children's home, you will rarely see Vanessa playing around with the rest of the kids. It's not that she is being rude or doesn't enjoy them, she is just more mature now. She isn't into "playing around" anymore. She prefers more teenage/adult activities. Sitting around chatting, listening to music, walking around with the other older girls, helping with the babies, etc. And she is extremely helpful, always helping whenever asked (or on her own initiative) and without any complaints!
Vanessa came to the home about three years ago along with her cousin Maria Fe. Before coming, she lived with her aunt or grandmother for most of her life, rarely spending any time with her mother or father, who separated when she was very young. I'm not a psychologist by any means, but if I had to assess Vanessa, I would say that this girl has it together! Based on the time that I have spent with her, I would say that Vanessa is an emotionally, physically, and spiritually healthy young woman! She is a self-professing Christian and constantly seeks to grow in her faith.
However, despite her "having it all together", there are still struggles that come with living at an orphanage. It seems at times that though Vanessa would love nothing more than to spread her wings and conquer the world, that living at an orphanage often restricts her in doing so. She is ready to grow up and move on in the world, finding what she loves to do, and living her life to the fullest! I have no doubt in my mind that as time progresses, this girl will do some pretty awesome things!
Please keep Vanessa in your prayers this week. Pray for opportunities for new experiences, and for direction into what area she might pursue once she is a little older. Pray for peace in Vanessa's heart, that God is with her in the difficult times as well as the not-so-difficult, and that He will be guiding her throughout her entire life. Pray that Vanessa's confidence would be in Christ, and not in trying to live up to other people's expectations. And pray that if it is in God's will, that Vanessa, though 14 years old already, would be placed in a family that loves her and cares for her, and helps her in pursuing all of her dreams. That is one of my my biggest prayers for Vanessa; that she would be blessed with a family to give her the love and one on one attention that that she desires and deserves.
May God bless you with discomfort
At easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships
So that you may live deep within your heart
May God bless you with anger
At injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people
So that you may work for justice, freedom, and peace
May God bless you with tears
To shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger, and war,
So that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and
To turn their pain into Joy
And may God bless you with enough foolishness
To believe that you can make a difference in the world,
So that you can do what others claim cannot be done
To bring justice and kindness to all our children and the poor.
