Isn't this a cute picture of Gong Lu and her new friend? It has been another wonderful day of surgeries in Shanghai. You can tell that some of the kids from the first couple of surgery days are beginning to feel much better by the amount of activity in the children who have already been healed. The babies are eating more and are so busy. Two of these children are Sara Jiao and Yu, who are both about 18 months old. Both of these little girls were from the same orphanage in Henan and are only two months apart. Sara Jiao is at Hope in Beijing, however, and Yu is in foster care in Henan. We tried to see if they would play together. Other than looking at each other closely, they weren’t interested. Both of these little girls have a big group of fans who snap photos of them and follow them around.
A volunteer brought up a toy puppy that moves and barks. Sara Jiao in her cute little pigtails absolutely loved it. She would follow behind it as it moved laughing and chasing it, but the minute it would stop and bark, she would turn and run. Another time, Wendy went into see her. She brought Wendy three bottles of water one at a time and then put them back on the table, one at a time. She also enjoyed running up and down the hall with her little black boots.Yu, the little girl whose lip was attached to her gum, was also feeling better. It was great to see her feeling better and back to her same little self. She has just enough of an attitude to keep everyone amused. She walks up and down the halls swinging her arms and checking things out. She had fun playing in the closet, going in and out, shutting the door. Later, she was playing in the hall with a ball.
Long, a baby who had surgery yesterday was really fussy today. As his ayi was walking down the hall with him, she had tears in her eyes. She is so worried that he is in too much pain. It is so touching every time we see the ayis fussing over the children in their care. This mission has been filled with so many compassionate and caring aunties.
One of the adorable babies that had surgery today was a beautiful little baby boy from Zhejiang named Jia. He has the sweetest little face and big eyes. If you old him facing out, he loves to take his right foot and twirls it in a circle. It doesn’t matter who holds him, he just loves to do this.The most touching story of the day was Yuan Yuan. This girl and her ayi continue to touch everyone. Today she was much more awake and I even received a smile from her. Her ayi refuses to leave her side and she took a nap this afternoon by sitting in a chair and resting her head on the bed. I was able to deliver a beautiful afghan that a wonderful supporter sent right before we left. This woman was so touched by Yuan Yuan, that she made this beautiful blanket and stitched her name on it. She loved her special blanket as we tucked her in.
Late this afternoon, the ayis tried on a box of clothes donated by the Shanghai expats. This group has thought of everything, including thanking the ladies who work SO hard each and every day in orphanages to care for the kids. Don White, one of our board members, helped this group of women. How funny it looked to see him helping all of these ladies choose their clothes. One ayi tried on an outfit that consisted of a vest and a jacket. Don complimented her on how great she looked and she just beamed.The hospital took us all on a river cruise on the Huangpu River right through the heart of Shanghai this evening. We all were so taken by how beautiful this city is. The lights of the Bund and the skyscrapers were quite spectacular. What a wonderful treat this was to all of us.
In total five smiles were made new – three bilaterals and two unilaterals. It is hard to believe there is just one more day of surgeries. The first 8 children from Hope foster home just left for the train station. 10 caretakers, 8 babies, and 10 suitcases have left the building. How fun to see everyone leave so excited and so anxious to get back home. It will be wonderful to see each and everyone one of these babies find their permanent homes in the coming year.
We received an email from one of the expats who has been coming to rock the babies. Her lovely words sum up this week.
I cannot begin to tell you how wonderful this experience is for me. The babies are an amazing blessing and so resilient. I think the Ayis have shown themselves to be wonderful caring women. I see it in their faces as they hold and play with their children. As well as the sadness and fear in their eyes as they await them after surgery. I personally have enjoyed seeing what just a few hrs of love and affection can do to the children. I am happy to put a smile on their face each day. They are so deserving of the opportunity that LWB has given them and I only wish more love for them all.
Wendy Peterson
Medical Trips Coordinator
Karen Maunu
Medical Director
