10
Location: Little Flower
Service at Little Flower has been such a touching experience. The baby home is a kind of atmosphere I’ve never been in; Washing your hands all the time, antibacterial gel every few meters, oxygen machines constantly buzzing. I was a little outside my comfort zone coming in the first day. Visit after visit. However, I made connections with baby after baby; learning about their personalities, what songs they like to sing, their nicknames and favorite games. As these relationships have formed, the feeding tubes and oxygen mask started to disappear. I’ve started to see the more I’ve come here that despite the special treatment these babies need, they are just like all babies; all they desire is attention and love.
It can be chaotic around the baby home, as you probably would imagine. There are lots of babies to hold, tears and snot to wipe off, and rattles to put away. But the moments when a child wraps their hand around your finger and looks up into your eyes are soooooo worth it. Your heart flutters and feels all toasty. Or when you throw them the ball and they toss it back (their aim isn’t great, but I can tell when they’ve tried). My favorite moments by far are the ones when you get them to smile. I find them to be the most heartwarming.
When our team departs from this trip, I don’t think I will remember untangling kids from wires or the moments they cried, or the times I got sneezed on. I’m going to remember the way these babies made me feel. Despite this being service, I think these babies have helped me gain experiences I will cherish for the rest of my life.