Rama and Imma

I continue to be amazed at the changes I see in the children here. Thinking back to the first day when each child made their arrival here, each one had their own heavy burden they were carrying. For Rama his burden was indeed great and he had suffered a lot. There were a few times I wondered if Rama was going to be able to continue living here with us. He was a very angry and hurt boy. Often he would take his anger out on the younger children by speaking harsh to them, pushing them and even hitting them. His first few months with us were quite a challenge.
Rama had never been to school but because of his size and age I could not enroll him in first grade so he was placed in second grade.

A story similar to Rama’s story could be told about Imma (Immanuel) when he first arrived here. At 10 years of age he’d never attended school and didn’t even know how to hold a pencil. His life too had been very hard before coming to live with us. He was a boy with a lot of pain inside and like Rama he was not kind to the younger children.

Before giving up on these boys we began to pray. Before making any decisions about whether or not they should continue to live here we asked the Lord for divine wisdom and guidance. God is faithful to take care of the orphans…the Bible tells us this and we have seen this truth come to pass here. Through loving discipline and a loving staff who showed these boys that they were safe here and we would protect them and not bring them harm, we began to see changes…wonderful changes.

It has now been more than a year that Rama and Imma have been here with us. They are completely different boys from the ones that walked through our doors over a year ago. They are sweet, thoughtful, obedient, loving boys.
In school they are doing so good...amazingly better than anyone would have ever expected from these two boys.
Rama’s teacher told us this week that she has appointed him as the class leader. This means he is the teacher’s assistant who helps monitor the class and help out whenever he is needed. His teacher told us he is the most respectful of all her students (he is in a class of 57) and he is an example to the other students.
Imma’s teachers applaud his efforts. He works very hard in all subjects but his favorite subject is math. Out of 60 students in his class Imma is ranked number eight. Imma’s teachers continue to tell us that his work effort and respectful attitude in school make him a student who stands out above the others.

We are proud of these boys. We are so thankful to the Lord for His goodness in touching their lives and continuing to do wonderful things in them.
They are a part of us here and the example they show to the younger children is one of hard work and respect. I am so thankful to the Lord for all He continues to do in the hearts of our children!!!