BABIES, inspired by BABIES!

Today was day one at the orphanage. We literally got there and were handed 3 babies to watch in what looked like a circus cage. We played with them for a while and then took them inside to eat. Then we played with more babies inside. The whole experience was a little strange. I definitely understand the Russian orphanages a lot more now. Since there's so many of them, their caretakers can't pick them all up to comfort them each time they cry, so they seem to have decided that they will just never pick them up unless they're transporting them. I got yelled at for picking them up to play with them and bounce them around but they so clearly crave contact and are so thrilled to get it when they can to the point that a baby can be crying and all you have to do is touch its back and it will stop. They even cry in such a way that you can tell they are not expecting to be heard. I can't explain it well, but I thought at first the baby I was watching had a sore throat or had lost his voice until I realized all of them cried like that: at a full intensity but not at a volume that would necessarily get someone's attention who was doing other things. ADDENDUM: They do cry like this, yes. However, the orphanage upon further observation and after talking to Sveta, our translator, is just severely understaffed due to funding. The walls are all colorful and covered in murals and the staff that is there all act like they've just taken 12 shots of 5 hour energy with the level of enthusiasm they convey while working with the kids. I would feel that any child adopted from there was extremely well taken care of and given as much enrichment as possible (each group of 15 has heir own outside garden/ play area, music lessons complete with a crazy accordion lady, exercise, and indoor play areas as well).  The next day we started out by weeding and then pretty much just played around with the babies from the day before. We left early to go on a tour of a nearby village... I can't spell it's name... And made tiny clay rams with a famous Russian toy maker and saw her and her family's (including her mother who wore an all yellow outfit complete with bright yellow snow pants in 80 degree weather) collection of paintings and toys. Then we went to a church and a museum about how people used to live there and collect salt to ship out to the rest of Russia. Last, we came back, ate, and went out for drinks where we heard the lovely story of travel safety and the merits of stuffing rubles in your underwear in case you are robbed and need to get out of the country.

Get babies in your life STAT. crossculturalsolutions.org