Zoo!

I really got a kick out of Zhen at the zoo this week. The American Farm exhibit made this boy quite nervous. He is suspicious of stuffed animals. Hand puppets horrify him! But, he didn't cry or whine like I would have expected a few months ago. He simply kept his precious toes away from the hungry sheep in the petting area.

I often wonder what his life would have been like after transfer to a mental hospital or "invalid" home as they are sometimes called. I doubt if a trip to the zoo would have been on his itinerary.

Then I happened upon an article from a Ukrainian charity's website. Read this account detailing a zoo field trip for some residents of a Ukrainian invalid home.

This is just the sort of enriching experience I wish for the disabled children of Crimea. A zoo field trip is going on the Project TLC bucket list.