Originally posted December 8, 2012
This is as close as we could get to Eric (far right). He WILL NOT let us take his picture.
Eric Alberto Castillo Yanes towers over everyone he meets at over six feet tall. Due to a poorly healed broken leg, Eric walks with a limp and is one of the more awkward looking young men you will ever meet. But his curly hair and shy smile will quickly disarm you.
Eric is one of the brightest young men we have had walk through our doors. He can talk at length about geography and his favorite subject is history.
Most of our kids are repulsed by the thought of reading a book, but Eric can sit for hours absorbed in anything he can get his hands on. That’s my kind of kid.
While still very hesitant to talk about God out loud Eric will choose a book about God and applying the Bible to his life. He often surprises us with questions about salvation and God’s saving power. Eric is full of a bravado that covers the hurt of his past and refuses to say anything negative about the parents that abandoned him at seven years old.
It’s obvious there is a river of hurt behind those laughing eyes, but he’s determined to make something of himself despite his addictions.
Eric is one year away from finishing high school and dreams of going on to college. He would love to travel around the world seeing other cultures. Eric is still opening up to us, and I pray the Christmas trip gives him the push he needs to feel a part of our family.