Adriana - House 4
Adriana is the youngest sibling among older brothers. The mother has had 8 children. Since the birth of the last one, the father has died from blood clots in his leg going to his head or heart. Since then the mother has shacked up with another younger man. They are both alcoholics, unemployed, violent and extremely negligent. The social workers on the case stated that the mother is psychologically unbalanced. She has threatened all authorities involved in her case and is aggressive. With her children this aggressiveness is both physical and emotional. The children find it normal to be beaten by the both of them.
The shack where all of them slept in the same room is located on the edge of the river that cuts through the outskirts of our town. It is extremely unhygienic and unlivable according to the authorities. In the shack there were rats running around the stove top among pots containing old food. If we were to only focus on the poorness of the situation, this could be helped. But in this case the mother refuses treatment and help. Any financial aid is wasted on booze and cigarettes. The adults are in a drunken stupor most of the time. The live in boy friend often knocks food out of the children’s hands. Many times his violence is so forceful that the children run away screaming for help. They have witnessed sexual copulation between the adults many times, as well as aggressive behavior between them as they attack each other with large knives and machetes. The mother has threatened to burn down the shack many times. This did happen a few weeks ago and now they are under a canvas in the bush with no bath facilities of any kind.
When Adriana came we learned that she hardly went to school. She and her brothers often begged at streetlights and practiced small time theft. Adriana came to us extremely dirty. She came later than the boys because she was hiding in the bush and did not want to leave this pathetic and sick situation, but the only comfort she knows. She has been singled out at school as the one to pick on because of her dirty condition and her manner of speaking. She will be transferred to another school. At first she sat at the gate and cried and wanted to run away. Slowly she accepted the love extended to her. She has been at one service already at the church and is now constantly asking when we will go again. She measures the love she feels for people by the distance between her hands. When asked about the other children in her COL home and the house mother, the hands are open wide. When asked about the house father, she barely separates her fingers. The hate she harbors for the step father in her prior situation is obvious. We have prayed over her and the road to emotional recovery will be long. Adriana’s birthday is Oct. 18, 1999. She arrived two days after her birthday.
2008 Update: Adriana is eight years old and in grade one. She has difficulty learning to read. Her long term goal is to be a dentist. Her work at home is to dry the breakfast dishes. When she has spare time she enjoys playing with dolls. She smiles a lot and is a loving child. She enjoys making herself attractive and giving massages to others. She is rather nervous and takes medication to help her sleep. She is active in Sunday School and the girls’ club at church. She shows good spiritual growth, happy to pray and sing, but has not yet accepted Christ.
Please pray that Adriana will continue to improve in her studies and learn to read.
2009 Update: Adriana has made good progress in her reading readiness course and is almost reading. School is a challenge for her as she has learning difficulties. She asks for prayer that her biological mother would stop smoking.
Birthday: October 18, 1999
Photo: Jul 2010
Brothers: Ari, Juliano Da Silva, Adriano