They Grow Up Fast

A handful of kids at the orphanage have recently entered their final year there before graduation. One of them happens also to be my pen pal, Sergey, who turns 16 today. While Sarah and I will be eating blini to celebrate his birthday, we will also be thinking about what faces him as he graduates this coming spring.

We've touched on this subject before, but I would like to emphasize that graduating from an orphanage does not carry with it the same sort of excited anticipation of something bigger and better ahead like it did for most of us. For most of these kids, leaving the orphanage can be as frightening as when they first arrived. Through no fault of their own, they face an uncertain future of limited opportunities and marginalization. Sergey faces some difficulty stemming from his past and present situations. He wants to be a truck driver, but his circumstances may limit him. He's been at the orphanage for 8 years. Sergey has told us he grateful for everything he has, and you can imagine that he would love to stay in his home awhile longer.

We will be his loudest advocates to make sure he is given a fair chance and that his options are not limited. Our goal is to get him some help dealing with his feelings, like most of us need. But we're also hoping to help the graduating class to gain some crucial life skills. We're looking into a program, somewhat like a summer camp, that would give these kids some necessary skills for living in the real world. We're doing everything that we can to make sure that these kids are not marginalized and rejected, but empowered and loved.