Elämä lapselle...
Kuuntelin eilen telkkarista Elämä lapselle -konserttia ja Lastenklinikan pikkupotilaiden liikuttavia tarinoita. Ja muistelin erästä kohtaamaani pientä poikaa. Jolla ei ollut puolellaan isää, äitiä, lääkäriä. Ketään tai mitään.
Työskentelin entisessä elämässäni viitisen vuotta lastensuojelujärjestössä ja osaltani organisoin vammaisten lasten avustushanketta Viipuriin.
Siellä kohtaamastani pojasta - sanotaan häntä vaikka Alexanderiksi - kirjoitin silloin näin:
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Alexander (born summer 2000)
Alexander was born in the town of Petroskoi, Russia. Two days after his birth his mother (a young unmarried woman) refused him. Alexander has lived in state institutions throughout his short life. As Alexander's mother has never cared for the child, she was stripped from all her parental rights over him in 2005. Nothing is known about Alexander’s father. His family members have never contacted him in the children’s home. In practice, he lives like an orphan.
Alexander is an intelligent, bubbly, sweet, physically disabled child. He can not walk or move by himself. Since his birth, he has had a club foot and an undiagnosed problem with his back, which prevent him from standing or walking. He can only move when supported by others. As the institution where he lives is not able to provide him with a personal assistant, he spends most of his life sitting or lying down in one place. One can only imagine how this affects an active little boy who would love to play with others, learn new things, make friends and go to school.
Despite of the hardships life has thrown on his path, Alexander is an open, social, playful little boy. He is bright ; he loves to draw, do claywork and participate in all possible functions of the children’s home. However, he is often confined to his bed or a chair and spends much of his time alone. This is already affecting his development. Alexander starts to fall behind in the development of his speech. Remaining still and alone will very possibly affect other aspects of his development (physical, social and intellectual) in the future. This is especially heartbreaking in the case of a child who adores being with people, children as well as adults, and craves for human contact. His biggest dream in life is to be able to move.
As Alexander can’t move by himself and has no-one to move him from one place to another, his life is literally very dark in many ways. For example, when the evening falls and it gets dark, all he can do is lie alone in his bed in the darkness. A little practical help was given to him in the form of a flashlight; as his hands - and his brain – work perfectly, he is now able to read in his bed after dark. But to truly lift him from the darkness, he would need an operation to his back, another operation to his foot, combined with some physiotherapy to rehabilitate his withered muscles. Lastly, he needs suitable aid equipment in order to finally be able to move independently.
Currently, Alexander receives no physical therapy and as a consequence his muscles are getting weaker and weaker. Having just started the first class in school, he is at a crucial point of his life. He could either start catching up with the other children, or fall more and more behind, to finally become outcast throughout his life.
With the help of an internationally funded program, Alexander could be able to move. With aid equipment, but nonetheless he would be able to move. In the life of this abandoned child, the difference would be life-altering.
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Minä yritin. Yritin oikeasti, mutta pelkään etten kyennyt tekemään juuri mitään merkittävää tämän pienen pojan hyväksi.
Voin vain sanoa että ikinä en tule unohtamaan häntä.
Mutta se ei Alexanderia auta elämässä eteenpäin. Ei yhtään.
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Elämä lapselle -konsertti oli taas tervetullut muistutus siitä miten onnekkaita me olemmekaan. Uskon lujasti määritelmään, jonka mukaan tärkein yhteiskunnan sivistyksen ja edistyksen mittareista on se miten se huolehtii heikoimmistaan.
Minun silmissäni Lastenklinikka nostaa Suomen korkeammalle kuin mikään muu kotimaassani kohtaamani taho. Sinne olisin niin halunnut kantaa Alexanderin ja ne kaikki muut Viipurissa kohtaamani lapset.
Heidän kohdallaan, muutaman tunnin junamatkan päässä, Lastenklinikat ovat utopiaa vain.
