In my last post I stated that Jose, Jenny, and their two children all share one bed.  I was mistaken.  Jenny has her own cot type bed, and Jose and the two kids share the twin mattress. 

 

Kayla took Ephraim to the doctor yesterday...he's doing okay, but the doctor thinks he may have an underactive thyroid which, if left untreated, can cause multiple health problems and eventually mental retardation that is irreversible.  We've got a list of blood tests he'll need...Kayla plans to take him to the lab tomorrow.  If his thryoid is underactive it's easily treatable with medication, but it's an ongoing condition, as far as I know.  Anyway, one more thing to pray about!!!

Have you ever felt lost, despite knowing exactly where you were?  I'm talking the kind of lost that sneaks up on you...middle of the day, when things seem normal, then BAM!!!  Suddenly, you find yourself at a loss, not sure what's going on or what to do next.  If you've never been to this place I'd suggest doing what you can to stay away.  Even now as I'm trying to tell a story I just can't seem to bring it together, a sure sign of just how lost I am...

 

Yesterday, Ephraim's mom came to church.  While this may sound like a good thing, something to be excited about, it played out more like a scene from a bad movie.  She was in a wheelchair, still without any muscle control.  She can't speak, cannot eat, and since leaving the hospital she has continuously lost weight.  A rough estimate, she weighs around 70 pounds, and I'm being generous. 

 

Jose, Ephraim's dad, brought Jenny, Ephraim's mom, to church at 10 a.m. for Sunday School.  By 11:30 Jenny was crying quite a bit, visibly in pain and discomfort from being made to sit up so long.  Her muscles, having not been used in almost six months, have atrophied, and without pillows and cushions to support her she basically collapse upon herself.  She still shows no real signs of recognition for her surroundings.  When people talk to her she cannot look at them, and it often appears as if she is not cognizant at all of what is happening.  She does occasionally seem as though she has some comprehension, such as a head jerk or a slight lifting of her hand, but nothing is consistent.   

 

As her pain and discomfort were obvious, Jose took her out of the sanctuary, and we thought he took her home, but just a few minutes later he was standing in the back of the church, alone.  A few of us decided to look for Jenny, and shortly thereafter we discovered that Jose had taken her to the cleaning closet and laid her on the ground, atop a few boxes, where he left her unattended.  Realize, when I say cleaning closet what I'm actually talking about is the space beneath the stairs of the school, outdoors with a dirt floor, where our cleaning ladies keep their supplies. 

 

As church neared the end Jose brought Jenny back inside, and as church ended he followed us outside rather quickly, pushing Jenny in her wheelchair all the while.  They met us at our car and Jose proceeded to tell us that he was ready to take Ephraim home.  After all, Jenny was getting better every day, he says!!  Better?  By all accounts she has gotten worse!!  She can communicate, he says, by means of pointing at letters on an alphabet board.  Yet all witnesses attest to the fact that Jenny cannot lift her hand on her own.  Rather, Jose lifts her hand and points to the letters needed to answer the questions he asks...yes, it's really this obvious and it's really this bad. 

 

Kayla tried to speak to Jose with reason, asking by what means he was going to take care of a baby.  How was he going to provide formula, diapers, and the medicines the baby needs?  Who was going to care for the baby when he wasn't around, when he was working?  He had answers, though they made no sense, so Kayla brought her mom out to talk to him.

 

The story didn't change.  Jose was adamantly stating that there really was nothing to worry about, despite the fact that what Kayla and I spend on Ephraim just for the necessities is 2 1/2 times the amount of Jose's monthly income...no, no need to worry.  Jenny is getting better, his sister is going to help him (although, according to his sister, no one is going to help him), he'll take Ephraim around town and ask for "donations" of formula (which means he'll beg for handouts), and as for the medicine Ephraim needs, well, God will heal him so there's really no need to worry about medicines. 

 

Neither Kayla nor Joyce were having any effect on the reasoning of Jose, so Kayla brought her dad out.  Again, same story, no change.  In fact, Jose accused Ronnie of not being a good pastor because Ronnie was telling Jose to be realistic and consider the health and safety of Ephraim rather than going along with the idea that God would simply heal him of any and all ailments.  Jenny sits in a wheelchair, slowly dieing slowly in front of everyone, and Jose says God will heal him.  Not "can heal," but "will heal, just like He's healing Jenny?" 

 

Jose went on to accuse us of not allowing him to see Ephraim since we've been caring for him.  This in spite of the fact that he has had an open invitation to our home during the last 3 months, all we asked is that he would call first and make sure we'll be around.  This also in spite of Kayla taking Ephraim to the hospital while Jenny was still there, and of telling Jose repeatedly that she would meet him at the church other times so he could see Ephraim, if only he would call us and make arrangements.  Of course, Jose said nothing of the fact that just last month his oldest son came to school with a back colored black and blue, courtesy of a metal pipe and Jose's temper. 

 

Now, please realize that I share these atrocities not to paint a negative image of anyone, but to help you all realize why we feel so strongly the need to keep Ephraim out of that home for as long as possible.  This is not a situation of a child returning to a home that was once broken and is now restored.  Rather, this is a case of a father attempting to manipulate a situation by using his child as leverage. 

 

The home Jose and his family live in is not even a home, but one room with a dirt floor.  They all share one twin mattress (Jose, Jenny, a son (12) and a daughter (10), and they have no running water.  Ephraim has shown signs of allergies, and upon his one visit to "his home" his eyes grew red, puffy, and teary, and he sneezed incessantly.  In addition, the water Jose's family drinks has been named as the only feasible culprit for Jenny's illness, so imagine what will happen if Jose mixes this same water with whatever formula he is able to procure and then feeds it to Ephraim? 

 

In short, allowing Ephraim to go "home" at this point is simply placing a child in harms way, and unless we are left with no choice, is something we cannot do.  Were Ephraim older, stronger, healthier, perhaps we would not be in such a predicament, but he is not, and we are.

 

Please, each and every one of you, pray for us, that we remain strong and steadfast despite the emotion and anxiety we are bombarded with, but most importantly, please pray for Ephraim, for his safety, that God will carry him along whatever path lies ahead.  Many of you reading this are not of the praying sort, perhaps you don't even believe in a personal God.  That's okay, because as my friend I'm asking you to do me a favor...pray anyway, even if you don't believe, pray simply to show your support, because I believe, because it will make me feel better. 

 

Pray...