One boy, Pasha (14 years old), just recently came to the orphanage with his little brother (7 years old) and sister (5 years old). They stopped attending regular school and were found at home in poor conditions. For their well being they were placed at an orphanage. I first met his brother and sister in the smaller children's group. Upon asking questions I found they didn't know their birthdays and had trouble with their family name. We later met their brother who was able to give us this information. Just imagine at 14 being the head of a small family! I felt how huge the burden was on this young man's shoulders. I'm thankful that he's getting help now from caring people at the orphanage.
Then, I got to celebrate his birthday with him. From his reactions I think that this may have been his first birthday celebration with cake, candy, music, games, and gifts. You could see he was working hard not to spend the time grinning, but he was definitely radiant. It was so touching to watch his eyes light up. And he even went out and brought me this little flower which I promptly put behind my ear. I plan to write him letters to encourage him in the future.
The second brother I encountered was Igor (thanks for the photo Sara). Igor has one younger brother and, honestly, he's a handful! I don't think he stopped for more than 2 seconds the whole time we were with the kids. And unfortunately it seems that the majority of dealing with his brother falls on Igor's shoulders. He is far to young for this responsibility that I'm sure would exasperate two healthy parents! I only spent a little time with him, but I plan to write him a letter of encouragement too. Being a big brother is important, but hard work!
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