Opportunity to Make a Difference

I work for a state agency, but my job usually does not result in contact with the general public. Yestereday, however, I opened the door and headed out to lunch when I saw a young man frantically walking towards me with two young girls, ages 4 & 2. He asked if I could let him in the building through an employees-only entry, and I directed him to the public entrance. Extremely aggravated, he shouted back at me that these two girls (no shoes, no bath in weeks, lice infested, and obviously terrified at this point) were not his kids, and that he found them playing in the busy street between the building and the parking lot. The kids were too little to provide anything but first names.

I had a co-worker join me so we could walk the man and the two kids down to CPS, which ironically, is in the same building. The man didn't want to turn them over to CPS because he didn't want to get the kids taken away from the mother. Fortunately, this is standard procedure when we see this situation come up in or around state facilities.

When we got about half way down the hall, a woman came running from behind us screaming at her kids for getting out of the car. We explained that we had to walk them down to CPS because they were found by a stranger playing in the busy street outside. She said that was fine, because she was headed there anyway for her appointment about her brother's case.

After CPS investigators took our statements, we all went back outside to leave for lunch. The man was still upset about "causing" the mom so much trouble. I explained that this was not his making, and that if she was this comfortable neglecting them on her way into the CPS office, imagine what it must be like at home--especially considering what physical condition the kids were in when he found them in a busy street. Anybody could have picked up those kids, and she is so fortunate, in so many ways, that it was someone decent like himself and that her kids are safe.

I'm sure most everyone's been in similar situations, although maybe not as extreme, and I just hope there is never a hesitation to step up on behalf of someone who cannot speak up for themselves, no matter the consequences. Hopefully, the man will officially call to report what happened so it can be dealt with appropriately. The future of those little girls depends on it.

People need to understand that neglect is abuse. Could this have been a huge misunderstanding? Maybe, but when we're dealing with children, especially small children, we have to err on the side of caution. This one instance could be a symptom of a much larger problem for these kids. I send up my prayers for the whole family so that something positive will come to them from what happened yesterday.

What We Really Need Is a Story!

You know, I just didn't realize how much I could be blogging about until I got a Kat call. So, I am going to try to do better from this point forward.

The lastest update, which has been weeks in the making already, is Bryan's role in our church's first ever spring musical, Eye Witness News--Live from Jericho. The church has worked hard to establish one of the best after school kids' clubs in the area. They have invested their time, effort and money into being the church by involving our kids in missions to help the community. When I first brought Bryan to kids' club, I fully intended on dropping him off and coming back later to pick him up after it was over. However, when I got there, after opening prayer, the kids broke into groups and Bryan happened to be in the group that began working on music. They teach the kids lyrics to songs and how to use sign language as they sing. While that may seem like a minor thing to some, I thought it was awesome and couldn't tear myself away. For this reason, among others where I have seen how they have helped the vulnerable in our community, I've been volunteering and helping with classes and whatever else is asked or mentioned when I can.

I'm particularly excited about this opportunity for our kids to step up and into the spotlight with our musical. We have kids from the 1st - 6th grades participating either by singing, dancing, and/or acting. These children are practicing atleast twice a week for about an hour and a half, and are learning their parts at home as well. We will soon be working on costumes and props. Our fearless leader, Tina, has bore the brunt of organizing everything and has done a superb job thus far. Her husband Jim, one of the most genuinely soft-hearted people you'll ever meet, has also been working with the actors group. One parent has been helping with the dancers. I've been working with the actors on lines and blocking.

I must admit--it's kind of fun to get back into this again. I did, after much cohersion from Mr. Cooper, participate in One Act Play--even managed to earn All-District cast member. The whole OAP was really alot of fun in the end, and I learned alot about myself. I finally realized that it's good to take risks and not worry so much about looking "stupid" or silly in front of other people. Too bad that happened in my senior year!! Or maybe that's a good thing?

Anyway, to the cool part--my boy Bryan is going to be acting the part of "Jack" the news editor. He will also have a solo in one of the songs at the very beginning, "What We Really Need is a Story". Bryan has always been an top student, but he almost missed this opportunity because we were trying to get the older students involved. We didn't get enough committed kids to sign up for speaking parts, and we needed a few good men--young men for the male characters. I mentioned that Bryan could probably handle a speaking part. He cold-read Jack's part and nailed it to the T. I was, and am, very proud of him for doing such a great job. We've had alot of fun already with it, but I know it will just get better as we continue to practice and pull it all together.

Anyway, we'll be practicing alot between now and showtime. The show is scheduled for Sunday, March 4th at 6:30PM. We'd love for family and friends to come out and see what we've been working so hard for!

Also...I've finally decided that Jayce is going to join kindergym gymnastics. Granny has graciously volunteered to take him to classes during the week so he can have some little kid interaction. After seeing him clothesline two little girls his age this Christmas, James & I decided he probably did need more time with kids his own age--seems big peewee football players are not the only kids he should probably be playing with. So, we're all very excited about his new activity too.

With that, I'm going to stick a fork in this one...