Staff Retreat
This past Tuesday, all of the staff from Hope For Each traveled about 30 minutes the other side of Dnipro for our first ever staff retreat. It was a great opportunity to get away for a couple of days to receive some teaching on working with orphans. In the evenings we spent time together and different games were played. The place where we stayed provided breakfast and Teresa did a great job in blessing us with good meals the rest of the time.
For our retreat, we brought in a brother and sister from Dnipro, Jenya and Ira, who taught us much about the life of an orphan and helped us better understand the attitudes and actions that are hard for those of us to understand who were raised in a good family atmosphere.
We looked at different stages in the life of an orphan and so much of it depends on WHEN they became orphans. When a child becomes an orphan as a baby, they go into a baby orphanage where there will be 15-20 babies in one room. The only time they are touched is when they need a diaper change or fed. The helpers at the orphanage cannot give special attention to them as there are too many children. They know that if they hold them, they will cry to have the touch of an adult. So what happens is they allow them to cry knowing that sooner or later they will stop. This abandonment as a baby begins a cycle that lasts for the next 17-18 years.
Some of the things orphans experience are tough to comprehend. We have no clue what they have gone through for many years of trauma and then we wonder why they are hardened and are leery to trust those who now want to make their lives better.
We were reminded to look beyond their behaviour to the hurt that caused their behaviour. This was not a path that they chose and some of them have to deal with so much trauma in their lives and it is hard to get them to open up because it is probably easier for them to keep that door slammed shut.
The teaching that Ira and Jenya gave us was very good and it probably will not be the last time we sit under their teaching.
The last day we all gathered in our room for our last morning session as it was pouring rain outside (it was a beautiful rain). After we had lunch, we gathered up our belongings and headed for home.
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| Garry and Max |
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| Vika, Max and Yulia's daughter, getting ready for our first supper |
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| Matthew (Max and Yulia's son) |
For our retreat, we brought in a brother and sister from Dnipro, Jenya and Ira, who taught us much about the life of an orphan and helped us better understand the attitudes and actions that are hard for those of us to understand who were raised in a good family atmosphere.
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| Jenya |
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| Ira |
We looked at different stages in the life of an orphan and so much of it depends on WHEN they became orphans. When a child becomes an orphan as a baby, they go into a baby orphanage where there will be 15-20 babies in one room. The only time they are touched is when they need a diaper change or fed. The helpers at the orphanage cannot give special attention to them as there are too many children. They know that if they hold them, they will cry to have the touch of an adult. So what happens is they allow them to cry knowing that sooner or later they will stop. This abandonment as a baby begins a cycle that lasts for the next 17-18 years.
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| Jenya teaching |
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| Wednesday afternoon |
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| Group project |
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| Jenya using Garry to make a point |
Some of the things orphans experience are tough to comprehend. We have no clue what they have gone through for many years of trauma and then we wonder why they are hardened and are leery to trust those who now want to make their lives better.
We were reminded to look beyond their behaviour to the hurt that caused their behaviour. This was not a path that they chose and some of them have to deal with so much trauma in their lives and it is hard to get them to open up because it is probably easier for them to keep that door slammed shut.
The teaching that Ira and Jenya gave us was very good and it probably will not be the last time we sit under their teaching.
The last day we all gathered in our room for our last morning session as it was pouring rain outside (it was a beautiful rain). After we had lunch, we gathered up our belongings and headed for home.
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| Thursday morning in our room |
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| Another angle of Thursday morning |
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| Group photo (Yulia, Vika and Matthew already in the car, and Nelly is hiding) |
When we got back, we discovered that our village had not received much rain, but within a half hour, it was raining very well and we ended up with 13-15 mm of rain. It was very welcome as the crops are looking very good and the first cut of alfalfa will be coming off very soon. Canola crops are in full bloom so the rain is very timely.
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| Yana caught a fish Wednesday evening |
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| A reflection in the pond
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