Anthony

I love this picture of Anthony. He is praying during the chapel service.

He has had a hard year. I had problems with his behavior from the start. He has a lot of anger and when he gets upset about something he just shuts down and won’t work. He has good days and bad days. I have been able to talk with his mom, with Debbie translating, several times. His parents are divorced, mom has a new husband or boyfriend, and dad just got remarried. The dad getting married again really made Anthony angry.

He is such a sweet boy and when he is having good day he has a beautiful smile! He stole the heart of one of the teenagers who was here on the mission trip last week. He was making a picture during one of the group activities and kept "messing up" and would start again and then would get upset. Sara came and got me to see if I could help with him. Finally I and Amanda (the young girl with the team) helped hold the material still as he printed the Bible verse he had been trying to write of "I can do all things through Christ which give me strength. Phillipians 4:13" He finally got it done and was so happy and pleased with his accomplishment.

He struggles with English and is behind in his Word Building and Science Paces. He comes on Saturdays to work with me. He has come a long way since the beginning of the year.

This past week he was very upset all week. Most days he wouldn’t work, but would just sit in his office and do nothing. He wouldn’t talk to me about what was bothering him.
Then Saturday he came to work on his Word Building and Science with me and he was still in a mood. He was not focusing on his work, and was getting very frustrated as we were working on the sounds of the English alphabet. Finally I looked at him and said let’s put the Paces away and let’s draw a picture. He liked that idea. I told him that I knew he had been sad all week and I wanted to be able to help him. I asked him if he would draw a picture to show me what makes him sad, and I would draw him a picture to show what makes me sad. So he went to his desk and started working on his picture.

He brought me a picture of he and I at school. And I was saying to him to go home, and he was saying “no”. So we talked about the picture and I asked him in Spanish if things at his house are good or are they bad? And he told me his house was bad. Then he told me that he doesn’t like being at home because his mom hits him and he smacked himself on the head. We talked a little – I want to be supportive of him, but only knowing his side it could be he is upset about getting a spanking. I know his mom is struggling. She has talked to me about Anthony’s anger and how she doesn’t know what to do with his behavior. He is a good kid. He prays with me with the kids when they are taking tests. He asked Jesus in his heart at the camp about a month ago. And I can see such a difference in him. At the beginning of the year he would sit in chapel with his arms crossed and his lips tightly closed and his face hard, and now he is singing and lifting his hands and praying…..he is such a picture of the change Jesus makes in your life!

Today he got to school and told me that his mom and her husband were fighting this morning. I talked to one of our teachers, Patty about what we should do. And she agrees that it would be alright for us to contact his mom and talk with her, just to let her know we are here to help her and pray with her with any trouble she is having with Anthony. And let her know that all the turmoil is affecting him very much.

Please pray for Anthony and his mom and for me to know how to help him.