Iosif and The Miracle Smile

By far, one of the most challenging experiences I’ve had occurred while rescuing Iosif and some of his siblings. I was about 4 hours away from the BOLCH picking up Iosif and a few more children to bring into the home. The children climbed into the van, and we were all ready to leave except Iosif. He did not want to get into the vehicle. His siblings and I tried to reason with him and, in a very gentle way, encourage him with details about the home in Brosteni. He did not say no, but he still did not want to get inside the van either. I had never been in such a situation, and I honestly did not know what to do. All of the children we have brought to the home in the past have been excited to come. I felt in my spirit that I should not leave him behind, so I went to Iosif and told him all the good encouraging things about the BOLCH that I was capable of thinking of and that if he did not like it there, I would personally bring him back. Then I helped him up into the van. My heart broke as I felt how scared he was. He did not resist me, but he was not moving on his own either.

Once he arrived at the BOLCH, Iosif did not speak, and he barely ate. We were all concerned about his well-being. A few days later, I had to leave early around 7 a.m., and I saw Iosif dressed and ready to go too. I had to tell him that I could not take him back at that time but that I would in a few days if he still wanted to leave. Yes, I was trying to buy more time for Iosif to settle in and adjust to life at the BOL Home. The ministry psychologist tried to talk to him with little to no response from him. It was a painful sight to see him hiding from all of us and having so little interaction with the other children. We finally were able to find out some information about his previous trauma and realized some reasons for his fears and the way he acted. I do not want to share too much, so I will limit what I say to this rhetorical question. Have any of us ever been thrown into the big trash bin at school? The level of bullying that Iosif had endured, in addition to other trauma at home, was severe. We decided to allow him to stay at BOLCH if he wanted to not expecting much improvement. A few days later, Iosif insisted that he wanted to leave and so I kept my word and took him back. I cannot begin to describe how hard it is and what it feels like when we have to remove a child from the BOL programs, knowing how much they need the shelter and the help, but we also do not want to add trauma to their life instead of helping them find healing.

It was a miracle when a couple of weeks later, I received a call that Iosif wanted to return to the BOL Home. I confess I did not believe it, and I said that I wanted to hear him say it himself. With a hesitant voice, he told me: Mr. Alin, I want to come back! And he did. To the surprise of all the staff, we brought Iosif back to the BOL Home. At first, he did not talk and stayed isolated from the others, but this time he was eating and making some progress.

I remember the first time I saw him smile. I took the children biking on a less busy road close to Brosteni. He surprised me, asking if he could come along. He had never ridden a bike before, but he happily used his legs to pedal while the older children were trying to teach him how to ride. That was the first time he smiled, and what a sight it was to see him smiling. Over the year he has spent in the home, he has made constant progress. Today he still carries marks of past trauma, and we pray and work to help him overcome his past and he is doing much better. These days we see his shy smile more and more often, and I was surprised to notice in a recent photo taken during the COVID-19 isolation that he is now riding a bike by himself. Iosif’s smile is one of the little things in life that speak so loudly. Recently when some of the children were going to visit with friends or relatives for part of the summer vacation Iosif said he wants to stay at the BOL Home. Iosif is just one of the many little souls that need us and our united efforts. He is one of God’s children, and we have the responsibility and the opportunity to present Jesus to him in a loving, sacrificial way.

“God places the lonely in families.” Psalms 68:6a

Alin Panican