Our three days of visits to six unsponsored orphanages has come to a close. Today we took the long and bumpy drive to Arbazh. This was the orphanage that caught my attention more than any other on my first trip to Kirov in November 2006. We were greeted with big smiles and children wearing the best clothes they had - even though they were often a little dirty and ill-fitting. The boys put on ties and the girls were wearing beautiful traditional dresses. They sang a song and presented us with bread and salt, a traditional sign of hospitality for Russians. The children there were so eager to connect. Eager, but empty. We saw on the tour that 57 beds were in one large room with barely any space to maneuver. This is where all the girls slept. Only 3 beds had a stuffed animal on them. The rest were vacant of a personal item. Growing up in an institution is not what God has in mind for children and families.
This is why I was so thrilled, when on Mother's Day 2007, Crosscurrent, a church in Northern Virginia, began sponsoring this orphanage. Their first mission trip there was planned for the same week I was in Kirov.
As my team arrived, the 15 Americans from Crosscurrent and dozens of children from the Arbazh boarding school were returning from playing some games at the town gymnasium. We enjoyed a delicious lunch with hot soup and then observed as the Crosscurrent team led a time of songs and an object lesson. Through these activities, as well as crafts, games, family groups, and simple quality time, the children were learning about God's amazing love for them.
We said goodbye to our new friends in Arbazh and drove straight to the Kirov train station to board the overnight train to Moscow.
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