August 12, 2009

Opium Kids

Here in Thailand there are thousands of poverty stricken souls who, despite the scarcity of resources, still find a way to get a fix. In mountain villages spread across the north, Opium is still widely grown. Thailand has been aggressive in cracking down on the illegal drug trade, but like everywhere, crime finds a way. The government realizes the problem, but the bigger issue is the officials who are rewarded to keep things the way they are.

Our concern is neither the government nor the traffickers. We are concerned about the victims.  Ever since we began looking for children in need; we have heard stories about kids whose parents exchanged children’s birthrights for an opportunity to chase the dragon.

Recently we visited such a place: The home of a man and a woman in their twenties living in an ordinary village. At this stage in their lives they should be busy working for a better future and caring for their kids. Sadly the opposite is true.

The grubby little hut where they live doesn’t even have a mat to keep the guests from sitting on the lumpy dirt floor. The inner walls are black as pitch from soot. There is a hole in the wall beside the door, fitting the dimensions of an adult body. The only sleeping area I saw was in a corner and about the size of a single mattress; but here lived 2 adults and two young boys.

We had come to visit them because we were told these parents were not taking care of their children. We were told the kids were left to fend for themselves. When we got there we saw it was true. The boys were filthy; the oldest had a distended belly, a sign of malnutrition. The youngest one was losing his hair, and his head was full of sores. We guessed these kids to be between one and three. Both of them were in serious need of a bath.

While we were there a neighbor dropped by; her connection to this couple is that she too is an opium addict. This woman’s children are in similar peril and she has already lost one of her four to disease. Her oldest girl is school age but not allowed to go to school, even though it is free. The lady’s middle child was missing; she did not know where she was that day. Her youngest was a toddler; Anchalee picked him up, only to put him quickly down again, because of the strong odor emanating from the child. This was a picture of neglect like I had never seen in Thailand; a place where family usually comes first.

Since this visit we have come across another situation equally as distressing, a couple with a newborn and a toddler. The newborn is eating right, because he is nursing, but the toddler is being fed condensed milk and is developmentally disabled from the resulting malnutrition. Once again it was young parents who are addicted to opium and have lost their way in this world.

In all of these cases, Anchalee and I have made an effort to encourage the parents to let us take their children to our home and give them a good education and a future. But like many other things in their lives, these parents can’t see past their next hit. Tragically, they won’t let us rescue their kids, but they will sell them to us for 300 bucks. What a horrible situation.

As much as it grinds on us that the cost of saving these children is within our grasp, the reality is that we cannot put ourselves in that situation. We simply can’t cross this line. Children are not a commodity. We can’t buy children. It is illegal and a slippery slope morally. We must obey the laws of this land, and remain within our Christian ethics. We believe that through prayer, these parents can see that letting their children grow up somewhere else is the right thing to do.

We need our partners and our intercessors to rise up in spiritual warfare. We must get these kids and others like them to a safe haven. Please join in our passion to help children in need and particularly to redeem these children from their malfunctioning parents. God has a plan and a purpose for all, even for the least and the last.