Fraol

Pronounced: Fra-wool
Age:11
Grade:2

What could I possibly say that would be able to fully express the story of this sweet blessing of a child? Do know that this blog post will not do his circumstances justice. This is only a mere attempt to bring a glimpse of Ethiopia to America. May your heart be moved.

Froal lives in a small little shack with his young, beautiful mother. He is an only child. When I say "small little shack," I mean what I say. This was the smallest home I had seen in all of Ethiopia. I would say his entire home is the size of my bathrooom. Now, I acknowledge that you may have never been in my bathroom. But, it can be assumed that it is normal bathroom size. One shower, one sink, one toilet. Nothing extra. Nothing excessive. So, we're talking about a small place. If you sat on the floor up against one wall and I sat on the floor up against the opposite wall, our knees would touch. Froal's mother owns a bed and a small stand.

When Froal was three years old, his father died, serving as a police officer. Froal's mother did not find out until it was too late that her husband was HIV positive. Consequently, Froal and his mother are both now living HIV positive as well. While there is medicine available for this disease, it comes with some conditions. Due to the severe side affects of the medication, Froal's mother chooses not to take it. The treatment works similarly to chemotherapy, in that it makes you sicker before it makes you better. Froal's mother feels it is her job to raise and take care of her son, and she can not afford to be sick. Froal does take medicine for his HIV, but it is necessary that he take it daily with milk. Milk can often be very expensive, and it is hard for Froal's mother to keep up on it. His mother works part time in the fall at a seasonal shop. But, for the summer, she is unemployed.

The home Froal and his mother were living in during our visit was provided for them by the Ethiopian government. It was a benefit of his father being employed as a police officer. But, as we were talking with the family, his mother shared with us that since her husband had been gone for 10 years now, the government was deciding to take their home away. They anticipated that they would lose their house within the next week, having nowhere else to go and no family to live with. Their situation was severe and uncertain.

There's one more thing about Froal. He doesn't know that he is HIV positive. When talking with him, his social worker refered to him as "a patient." His mother has chosen not to tell him about his illness yet. He knows that he takes medicine every morning and that sometimes he feels sick. But, he does not know the reason for either of these things. Froal's mother keeps his illness from him because she wants him to be able to live a normal life for as long as possible. Often, when a child knows he or she is infected with HIV, he/she becomes embarrased, ashamed, and anti-social. The child may withdraw from his friends and become as secluded as possible. Froal mother did not want this for her precious son. So, at this point, he is still unaware.

This family was a joy to spend time with. In their little house they made us spiced tea from wild herbs and served us the little bread they had. Froal blew bubbles out the door to the neighbor kids who stuck their little heads in, curiously. When we gave him a letter from a child in American who had written to a child in Ethiopia, he was thrilled. As soon as the letter was translated, he found some paper so he could write a letter back. He was filled with questions and curiousity about the boy in America who had written to HIM. He wanted to know everything about him. What is his favorite color? What is his favorite game, favorite subject in school? What does he want to be when he grows up? Fraol wants to be a doctor so he can help people in Ethiopia who are sick. This tends to be a common aspiration among the Ethiopian children.
Before we departed, we prayed, as was a common part of our home visits. We prayed for the health of both Fraol and his mother. We prayed for their finances, living environment, and food. And in faith, we know that God will provide. As I left Fraol's home, I hugged him and his mother, knowing that the experience I just had would forever change me.

Walking down the poverty-stricken Ethiopian streets moments later, tears welled up in my eyes for the first time since I had entered the country. In that moment, it was becoming so real. Fraol's mother probably won't live more than a few more years. They don't have anywhere to live. They pray to God to give them food for the next day. That was a rough one. Yes, that one indeed....was rough.

With some of the donated money we received for our trip, we were able to provide one year's worth of milk for Fraol, and three months worth of rent for a new home until his mother can continue her employment in the fall. We thank God for the opporunity to bless this family. If you are interested in sponsoring Fraol or any of the other children in the BCI program, you can contact me for more information, or visit http://www.blessingthechildren.org/

God bless you.