The girl whom we named Ana* clearly had mental and physical issues that needed immediate attention. With this situation being a new and huge dilemma for us, we followed what we thought to be the obvious route of wisdom. I took Ana to a missionary dentist, and after the exam, he said that her teeth indicated that she was about fourteen years old. We thought she would be a couple years younger than that. I realized that girls were smaller and looked younger than their age when they were nutritionally deprived in their early development—such was the case with Ana.

I watched Ana settle in with our family, and she showed the maturity of a toddler. She needed help with any type of activity, including taking a shower or brushing her teeth. The girls taught her to eat with a spoon or a fork, but she frequently used her fingers. This girl had deep needs, and I spent much time pondering what we could do with our limited staff and abilities. I knew the love and security she felt with us would influence her life, but I wanted to see healing. We needed to know what damaged her brain function.

“Ana, it is time to go upstairs and get ready for bed.” Ana looked at me and back at the floor but didn’t make any move to get off of the couch. “Come on, Ana. It is time to go upstairs.” All of the other girls had left for their bedrooms, but Ana didn’t budge. I took her arm and nudged her toward the stairs but felt solid resistance. I realized that “stubborn as a mule” needed to be added to the list of issues we would be facing. I lifted her face so I could look into her eyes, but she refused to connect with mine. “Ana, you are God’s beautiful creation. He loves you, and we love you. He brought you to our home so you would be safe and be part of this family. Part of being in a family requires obedience. I’m asking you to be obedient to me and go upstairs.” I paused and then prayed for the Lord to help Ana to understand what she needed to do and act on it. I didn’t know if she understood my words, but she rose off of the couch and, as slow as a turtle, moved up the stairs to her bedroom.

The court psychologist did not get anywhere with Ana during her first visit. We started out with me in the room and then decided it would be better for me to be out of sight. None of that made a difference, and Ana refused to give any type of response. She sat in her usual position, with her eyes looking downward and her bottom lip sticking out. I’m sure the psychologist tried every trick in the book to document some sort of action, but Ana portrayed a frozen statue. We were told that Ana didn’t need to come back for any more psychological appointments. The psychologist said that putting her in a mental institute would be the best option for her.

No, Lord, she can’t go to one of those horrible places.This isn’t justice! My heart sank. I had hoped that something would help unravel the mystery about Ana. I left the appointment with her, hand-in-hand, and with disappointment in my heart.

Next, we made an appointment for her to meet with a brain specialist in Guatemala City. Having a professional evaluate her brain function would surely shed some light on how we could help this young girl. I looked forward to this time with great anticipation.

*Name has been changed.