The Least of These

Several people asked me why i traveled back to China for 6 weeks so soon after moving back to the states. While there were many things that played into that decision for me, I know that one reason I was there was the lesson that I learned helping with this orphan:


(I borrowed the picture from a friend's blog)

What I did:
My first Monday back in China, some of my doctor friends noticed him at the orphanage. They didn't expect him to live more that a few days without extra help (more than what the orphanage was doing). They got permission for him to be fostered, and he was taken in by one of the single teachers from the school I worked at my first two years. But, since she works full time, I offered to take him into the hospital for some tests that the doctors wanted him to have.

So I picked him up one morning at 7 am and we had a 30 minute taxi ride to get to the Children's hospital where we met one of the Chinese workers from the office that works a lot with the orphans. He was going to do all the communication with the hospital for what tests we wanted to get. First, we went to a small office to get official prescription slips for the tests that we wanted to get. Then we took those slips to the payment window. In China, anything you have done at a hospital (which is not only what we think of as a hospital but also what we think of as a doctor's office) must be paid for in cash before you start. So for each of the tests we wanted we gave money and got an official receipt which we would use later to actually get each test.

First we went to get an ultrasound of his heart. They had a lot of trouble with this because he was crying as soon as we set him on the table so his chest was moving in a out a lot, but also because his chest was concave and his ribs stuck out so much that it was hard for them to maneuver where they needed to. Finally we took a break from that and headed to the next thing... a chest xray. They had me stand at the head of the table and hold his head/arms still. The Chinese guy that had met us there asked the technician if there was a lead apron I could wear and the response was that it didn't matter, but I could get one if I wanted it... yes, I was no longer in America. Then we headed to the blood station to get is blood drawn for several tests. His arms/hands are so little they used a vein that you could easily see in the middle of his forehead. I again had to hold his head/arms as they stuck a needle in his head and took his blood (of course while he screams). At least they were able to get enough from the first stick. We also got an abdominal xray and ultrasound. We were supposed to get a urine and stool sample, but since he only eats about one ounce every couple hours we weren't surprised when that didn't happen. We went back several times for the heart ultrasound. We had enough trouble that one of the doctors from the global doctors office (that works with the orphans) came out to meet us and was able to help. Eventually I think they got a good enough picture, although they want to try to get a better one in a couple of weeks. Then that doctor decided he was doing well enough to get some other kids of tests, but she just took him back while I waited.

5 hours after we arrived at the hospital it was time to take him home. He slept the whole taxi ride back.

What I learned:
I started this post that day, but was still processing what I had been a part of. More than anything else, it reminded me of the intrinsic value of human life. The whole time I was holding him and feeding him with a dropper I just kept pondering things like,"why can I be loving him and caring for him so much?" It wasn't like I was getting anything in return. The doctors suspected then and later diagnosed him with down syndrome. Knowing he was in China, and what that kind of diagnosis would mean for how he was treated and opportunities he was given even made you wonder what, really, were we saving his life for? But that answer comes down to love. We loved him and wanted to save him because God created him. And in that moment, that was all that mattered. That experience really made me start looking at everyone differently, seeing the intrinsic value in everyone. It also made me start re-evaluating my priorities for what is really important.

following up:
They found out that he was 9 months old and weighed less than 7 lbs. There were records of him being 2 months old and a healthy weight. They suspect that his parents were raising him and then noticed that something was different (signs of downs syndrome)and then abandomed him. He had pneumonia induced from inhaling his milk during feeding (probably because he was being fed flat on his back, but conditions at the orphanage are a topic for another day). Shortly after I took him to the hospital an American family in the city decided they could take him in as a long term foster child (or as long as the orphanage will allow them to keep him). After some love, care, and feeding he is doing much better.



This little guy definitely stole a piece of my heart.