Friday is officially over for me. My last work day in Romania, over. This internship, basically over. My final full week, over. How strange is it to say that? Three months ago I never would believe this day would come. So surreal that the occurrence hasn’t quite sunk in yet. I doubt I will even cry about not seeing my kiddos again till a few days after I get home. Because I feel that “going home” is more like a vacation and after about a week I am coming back to Romania where I have lived my whole life. I know living somewhere for three months doesn’t seem like a long time. But, when you create a constant routine in a foreign country, day after day, it comes to seem like it. It really has not sunk in yet at all for me. I can’t even discuss what it is like for me to not go to “work” anymore.
So for those of you who have actually read this, and of course for myself, I am going to go over again my daily outline. I wake up around 8:00am. I shower, eat quickly, and walk to the orphanage. I wear the same clothes every single day-my gaucho pants, boots, and a hanes white t-shirt. Since it has been cold, a jacket and gloves have been added. The walk to the orphanage is a little less than a mile. I arrive around 9:00 and change into my scrubs and work shoes. These shoes are kept there ever day so as to not get dirty by wearing them. I then walk upstairs to the top floor since classrooms for those who pay are located on the first floor. I walk upstairs and make a right at the very end of the hall. I walk through a doorway leading to the “Bambi” rooms, passing the eating hall on my right. Bambi 1 is on the left and mine is just past, going straight. I open the door, that has a window so as to see out of into the hall. Normally I see my kiddos before opening the door to see who is up. I walk in and my kiddos look up, start to laugh, and run over towards me. They come up and hug my legs since they are just little guys. After that I am with them for about an hour when 10:00am hits. At this time I load up the ones who need chairs and hold the others by the hand as we go to “la masa”, which is morning snack. Often I will be pushing one of the wheel chairs, have another one of my kids helping push it, while I am holding another by the hand. We walk towards the cafeteria and I seat all the kids at their little tables. After that I help feed the ones that need it. Occasionally I will be given the same snack they eat. Usually this is a wafer cracker with a banana or apple. After that we cart the kids back to the room. Then, depending on the worker, some or most of the little ones will take a nap. Screaming usually occurs for the first 10-15 minutes but they all eventually fall asleep. I get special time with the other who are up the whole time I am there, for the most part. Then at 11:00am, 2 of my kiddos have a special lunch time just for them. Then, depending on the worker, I might help feed one of them, or watch the others while they are carted away to eat. They usually come back around 11:20-11:30. Then I get about 15 minutes to be with them after until the other kids need to get up. The other kids are then woken up, sometimes taken to get a diaper changed, and allowed into the playroom. There are two small bedrooms, one in the front and one in the back, that has 5 cribs in the first, and then 2 small beds with some cribs in the back. So after that, I try to settle them down before lunch. We clean up the toys and then I put aprons or bib-type thing on them to get ready for “la masa”, lunchtime. At noon we cart off again towards the cafeteria. I usually end up sitting at a small table and feed 2 kids. Then if I have time I will feed another. But, they start with a main meal (usually looks rice based), then have a second course of soup. If they are good they receive a gumdrop or chocolate after they finish. By the time we are done it is 12:30 and I take them back to the room. I walk downstairs and change. After that I leave to start my walk home. By the time I come home it is 12:45 or later and I get ready to eat. Everyday I come home and make myself a grilled cheese sandwich. As soon as I am done I bring all my things and head over to the other apartment with the Internet. Though I haven’t done it in the last few days, the first 2 ½ months consisted of the hospital at 2:00pm. We start walking there which is the opposite direction as the orphanage. It is in the direction heading towards Iulius Mall. It is about a 25 minute walk to the hospital. We arrive and work till 5:00pm. We then walk all the way back the apartment. Monday is FHE, Thursday is Outreach, Friday is Institute, Saturday sometimes has activities, and Sunday is of course church. This doesn’t include our own little things we want to do. Dinner of course happens sometime after 5:00pm. I then get everything done I need to and go to bed around 10:00. I wake up the next morning and repeat.
I did this for about 2 months. For me, I don’t know how I did it. It seems so long ago that I first came here. I have decided to set my entry on Sunday about how much I have changed since I first arrived. I have really come a long away from the scared person I was when I first got here. Today wasn’t really goodbye because I plan on going back Monday. I need to drop off some gifts for my workers and Teo and then pick up the cd containing the pictures of our kiddos! Which I must say I am so excited to show off to the world since I can’t post any of them online. I hope to stop by and say my last goodbyes.
I still have 4 ½ days left and still so much to get done! Packing, deep, deep cleaning, and shoppingJ I really do have a lot. But, I will be posting a little more before I come home! So that’s all for now.
Cu mult drag,
Dani
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