Blogger.com: A Young Girl's Platform for the Future

During today's clinic, I met an interesting young lady.  Initially, she struck me as having some what of an attitude.  She was cooperative, but she appeared to be very standoffish, not to mention annoyed with thewait time.  In her defense, there was a considerable wait today. wait time.   In her defense, there was a considerable wait today due to the fact that most of the patients needed to be seen by Ron.  Yesterday's caseload had many patients who needed wound care treatment  or physical therapy, which allowed us to expedite their care.

Nonetheless, it was finally this young lady's turn to be seen.  I called her in to be triaged.  Her countenance began to change once she was able to get our attention and seek help for her medical discomfort.  After documenting her chief complaint, I passed her along to Nurse Bertha.  She presented with a minor case of dermatitis.  I interjected and volunteered to get her a bottle of liquid soap in the event her bar soap was responsible for the irritation.

After evaluating this young lady in our clinic, I bumped into her numerous times in the hallway.  She still wouldn't reciprocate a smile; instead, she would just follow my movement with her eyes.  I bumped into this young lady again as I went into the computer lab to get cracking on our blog.  Several kids crowded around me to see what I was doing on my laptop.  I showed them some of our pictures from the trip.  Next thing I know, I feel someone playing in my braids.  I turn around to see who it was [actually, my initial intention was to tell whoever it was to stop], and it was this same young girl.  What?  Is this the same chick that couldn't even break a friendly smile for the American lady that triaged her in the clinic???  I smiled and kept on doing what I was doing.

A few moments later, Jennifer Gray delivered a message that Ron wanted us to talk to some of the girls one-on-one since our mental health professionals were tied up in a training course for some of the other young girls at the orphanage.  So, I went to look for my fren-nemy.  Of course she was lingering nearby.  I asked her if she wanted to talk to me about anything.  She was apprehensive at first, and didn't say "yes" or "no," but quickly acquiesced as I pulled my chair closer to hers.

I must preface the remainder of this story by letting you know that the majority of the girls at Wema are "street girls." Street girls are young girls who live on the streets and are forced to take care of themselves from a young age.  A large majority of the girls have been exploited.  Wema's vision is to rescue street children and transform them into fulfilled and responsible children. 

In getting to know this young lady's story, I discovered that she was a street girl at an incredibly young age, five or six years of age, and forced to quit school to take care of her mother.  Her mother was suffering from tuberculosis, and she had to run the streets to get money for their rent.  There was no father in the picture, nor was there any extended family to step in.  This girl was very scared, but knew she had to hold it down for her family.  What an awesome responsibility to put on a child. 

Months after running the streets, she stumbled upon a conference for children, where she bumped into a Wema representative that inquired about her story.  He was concerned when he found this young girl traveling the streets alone.  He sent social services to the young girl's home, and they quickly assessed that her mother was incapable of providing adequate care for her.  Shortly thereafter, she became a resident of Wema and has never left.  That was ten years ago.

While she shared her story, I interrupted her and asked what she wants to do when she grows up.  She told me that she wants to be a journalist. Apparently, she attends some sort of youth outreach facility on the weekends that helps her cultivate her writing skills.  She made certain not to let them know she is an orphan for fear they will no longer allow her to benefit from the services.  She is ashamed of being a street girl, and thinks people will discriminate against her if they know where she comes from.

The fact that she even found this facility is a prime example of how resourceful she is.  As an aside, she googled "kenyan visas" and discovered how to apply for a visa.  She said the only problem limiting her was her lack of resources.  Wema provides for all of her needs, but she does not get an allowance.  I was very impressed with this young lady.

Anyhoo, to told her that today was her lucky day, and that she was going to start sharpening her tools to become the journalist she's always wanted to be.  I gave her my laptop and walked her through the steps on starting her first blog.  We logged onto blogger.com, came up with a catchy title for her first blog, and she took it from there.  I wrote her first entry:
    "So, I met this American lady today who changed my life forever!"

Here's her first entry:

   "Am so happy today, because my friend taught me how to use blog & i can now have somewhere to
   write eg stories, take notes on important issues e.t.c.  Thanks so much I really appreciate. now am
   ready to pursue in my goals. if it wasn't for her and the help of God making me meet her, it could
   be a different story."

Wow!!!  I'm so thrilled for her.  I'm glad God was able to use me to give this young girl hope.

Written by:
Adaire Brown