The name of the school is Escuela Especial or "Special School." It is overflowing with children who are in fact SO special that they can put your entire existence in perspective with a smile. When helping Ramon today, a 14 year old boy with down syndrome, I learned what it truly means to give something your all.  I watched him use every ounce of his energy to move one bead on an abacus. The concentration he used to determine which bead was blue and which one was red was nothing short of an inspirational triumph. If I faced my challenges with half as much determination as Ramon, I would have actually been able to become an astronaut. I looked across the room as Sarah was working one on one, practicing vowels with another student named Erickson. He was working with the same intention as Ramon. Both students worked diligently and concentrated with smiles on their faces, benefiting greatly from the individual attention they so desperately need. They were somehow able to tune out the screams and distractions from their classmates that they constantly have to compete with for attention and get the job done. Their teacher, Yahoska,  doesn't use any pre-printed materials, she draws them all by hand when she goes home at night. The government does not provide her with any books or direction on how to teach children with such specific needs and at all different levels. So, just like with life, there is no instruction manual....she does the best she can.

The classrooms never have their lights on except to get the attention of the children who are deaf. They conserve every unit of energy, scrap of paper, and use cardboard boxes for trash cans. The toilets don't work, they don't have books and share one pencil eraser for the entire class....but the the school has as much heart as the students who attend it. These kids have a safe place where they are free to be themselves among people who care deeply for them and no lack of traditional supplies or classrooms will ever change that.

This morning I will be visiting the home of Sulema, the girl I wrote about on our first day who is one of 15 children. Her mother will be investigated by the ministry of families for child abuse. When I held her in my lap yesterday I could not believe how small and frail she was. She is seriously malnourished and completely filthy. She was wearing a school uniform shirt with only one button in tact and the shirt looked like it had been run over. When I parted her hair to look for signs of lice I saw the worst infestation I have ever seen.....with my lice experience, that is a big statement. Bugs were crawling all over her head, it was shocking. The teachers don't know what else to do and definitely struggle over how to repair her home life. To a majority of the students the school is more like a home than the actual one they are living in. I hope to get some answers today and make some progress in improving this little girl's life. Although it seems a little crazy to make this my business in a country that I don't live in, I am willing to be in an uncomfortable situation if it helps to spare this girl. Because Sulema can't talk, I kind of feel like I was brought here to be her voice.  Her situation has consumed my heart.

The reality of the situation we are working in can be tough if you allow it to be. If you dwell on what you perceive the children are missing it can rapidly ruin your day. These children make you laugh until it hurts but can also bring you to tears with how very capable yet entirely misunderstood they are. What has overshadowed the depressing thoughts about their situations is simply the spirit of these children. I am inspired by their abilities, their hearts and their willingness to always, as long as it takes, keep trying.

Wish me luck!

LM