I have had some hard experiences the past few days. I mentioned before that we are openly encouraged to hug, hold, and play with the children. One of the greatest gifts we can give them is the physcial attention they don't get anywhere else.
While the other volunteers happily throw and lift the children, much to their delight, I tend to be quieter. I always have one or two or three little ones who seem to want nothing more than to be quietly snuggled. Two days ago I met Roxanne. She's in grade 2. She wandered up to me almost shyly and I opened my arms to include her in the small group of kids who were surrounding me. She rushed in and pressed herself close.
One of the children asked if we could sit (they love this because then there's a lap to climb onto). I agreed and we found an out of the way spot. Roxanne immediately crawled into my lap, wrapped her arms around me, and pressed her cheek into my neck. Another little girl curled up against my side and a third started playing with my hair (which is another favourite thing to do, luckily lice isn't a problem...).
We sat quietly and I noticed Roxanne was shaking. I peeked at her face and she was weeping. Not loudly or noticably, just gently crying. I asked what was wrong and she just buried her head further. I spent the next 20 minutes rocking her while every now and then she would squeeze me and I would hug her back.
I still don't know what was wrong. She seemed to need a safe place to be and I'm glad I could be there for her. I know very well the feeling of being overwhelmed with emotions when you feel safe. But that this little girl's safe place was in the arms of a stranger breaks my heart. She didn't come back to find me yesterday or today and I can't stop thinking about her.
While the other volunteers happily throw and lift the children, much to their delight, I tend to be quieter. I always have one or two or three little ones who seem to want nothing more than to be quietly snuggled. Two days ago I met Roxanne. She's in grade 2. She wandered up to me almost shyly and I opened my arms to include her in the small group of kids who were surrounding me. She rushed in and pressed herself close.
One of the children asked if we could sit (they love this because then there's a lap to climb onto). I agreed and we found an out of the way spot. Roxanne immediately crawled into my lap, wrapped her arms around me, and pressed her cheek into my neck. Another little girl curled up against my side and a third started playing with my hair (which is another favourite thing to do, luckily lice isn't a problem...).
We sat quietly and I noticed Roxanne was shaking. I peeked at her face and she was weeping. Not loudly or noticably, just gently crying. I asked what was wrong and she just buried her head further. I spent the next 20 minutes rocking her while every now and then she would squeeze me and I would hug her back.
I still don't know what was wrong. She seemed to need a safe place to be and I'm glad I could be there for her. I know very well the feeling of being overwhelmed with emotions when you feel safe. But that this little girl's safe place was in the arms of a stranger breaks my heart. She didn't come back to find me yesterday or today and I can't stop thinking about her.