Though the past of a child might not be communicated to us, we often get an idea of that child’s past based off of their personality, traits or reactions. In this case, the permanent burn scars on the side of his face, head, and his entire arm with incision scars indicate and obvious and hurtful history of this child’s life. When this boy came to our school, he had only been in the children’s home for a short time before coming from a village. He would wear a bright yellow hat for the first few weeks to cover his permanent head scars. I just realized that it’s been a long time since he’s worn that hat, it’s nice to see that he’s grown comfortable without it. He is illiterate in Thai and English and was overwhelmed in the classroom (I believe he came to use only knowing his tribal language). At least, he has a hard time recalling things that he’s learned.
However, he has a special spirit about him. He has an attitude of perseverance and is eager to learn. He has a servant’s heart and will often do things not asked of him and he does it with the best smile. He loves to dance and will often bust out in a break dance in the middle of class and just laughs. He must have a bit of a gas problem because he often asks to step out of the classroom to “poot poot” and says “I smell” and waves his hand by his nose. He’ll sit right outside and will sound like a motorboat and he just laughs. I have grown to appreciate him asking permission to leave . . . even though it took me a long time to realize the difference between him asking permission to go to the bathroom and him asking to leave the room to “poot poot.” At first I was wondering why he was specifying whether he was going #1 or #2, haha, but now I know it's just "pooting." He likes to talk in a high squeaky voice when he’s being silly. He speaks to you with his eyes and I can only imagine what those eyes have seen but there is something so kind and gentle about him. He desires to succeed.
It was difficult for him to learn the English alphabet – to remember each letter and how to spell his name (he could write them but could never say the letters). We would work on it one on one and repeat how to spell his name over and over. We would take a break for a minute and I’d ask him how to spell his name and he’d look at me confused and scratch his head and say “don’t know.” We would try again and again. One day, about 10 minutes before school ended, I told him to repeat the spelling of his name over and over and over while he cleaned up and packed up. For the rest of the day, he went around repeating his name out loud and when he waved goodbye to me, he was still saying his name again and again. It took a lot of one on one time, repetition and encouragement, but he now knows the English alphabet and can tell you how to spell his name in an instant (which he follows up with a smile knowing that he’s accomplished something). Learning may always be a struggle for this child, but in the time we’ve known him, he has made much progress. One of the most important things is that he knows that God loves him. He is safe and he is being offered a hope and a future with the love that is promised to him.
However, he has a special spirit about him. He has an attitude of perseverance and is eager to learn. He has a servant’s heart and will often do things not asked of him and he does it with the best smile. He loves to dance and will often bust out in a break dance in the middle of class and just laughs. He must have a bit of a gas problem because he often asks to step out of the classroom to “poot poot” and says “I smell” and waves his hand by his nose. He’ll sit right outside and will sound like a motorboat and he just laughs. I have grown to appreciate him asking permission to leave . . . even though it took me a long time to realize the difference between him asking permission to go to the bathroom and him asking to leave the room to “poot poot.” At first I was wondering why he was specifying whether he was going #1 or #2, haha, but now I know it's just "pooting." He likes to talk in a high squeaky voice when he’s being silly. He speaks to you with his eyes and I can only imagine what those eyes have seen but there is something so kind and gentle about him. He desires to succeed.
It was difficult for him to learn the English alphabet – to remember each letter and how to spell his name (he could write them but could never say the letters). We would work on it one on one and repeat how to spell his name over and over. We would take a break for a minute and I’d ask him how to spell his name and he’d look at me confused and scratch his head and say “don’t know.” We would try again and again. One day, about 10 minutes before school ended, I told him to repeat the spelling of his name over and over and over while he cleaned up and packed up. For the rest of the day, he went around repeating his name out loud and when he waved goodbye to me, he was still saying his name again and again. It took a lot of one on one time, repetition and encouragement, but he now knows the English alphabet and can tell you how to spell his name in an instant (which he follows up with a smile knowing that he’s accomplished something). Learning may always be a struggle for this child, but in the time we’ve known him, he has made much progress. One of the most important things is that he knows that God loves him. He is safe and he is being offered a hope and a future with the love that is promised to him.
