We met Robert on our day off. We had accedently driven to a small town called Santa Cruz which foreigners can only get to by boat. We drove down a steep mountian because our host (the driver) had been following google maps. Our car leaned almost to the point of flipping multiple times, but at that point there was no other option but to continue going down. There was no turn arounds. The unpaved road ended at the bottom of the mountian going straight into a lake. No one had ever driven here. The locals were shocked. We arrived in the late in the afternoon and hungry. Every restraunt we entered required their guests to make a reservation for dinner. No reservation, no dinner. We had a group of 8 so there was no way to make an exception to the reservation rule. Luckily we made it to one cafe that was closing in 30 mins. The owners name was Robert.
Robert looked like a skinny Santa to me. He had a long white beard and a big smile. He wore prayer beads around his neck and a tie dyed jean shirt. He told us he had opened the restaurant because he and his wife wanted a place to eat and stay as long as they wanted, and because all the other places to eat required reservations. He wanted to help the people who also didn’t have a reservation.
Robert was a Canadian who had married a Muslim women he knew for 4 days and had met in India.
“My plan was to marry her and work all the other things out later” he said. They loved Guatemala and opened a cafe called Nepal cafe together. Robert has never been to Nepal.
Nepal cafe did not have electricity so when the sun set, Robert made food in the dark with his head lamp. He lit candles for his guests and offered bread to them as they waited.
Robert’s policy is to never turn away someone who is hungry.
We ate at his cafe the first night we were in town. He welcomed us in, lit the candles, gave us bread and made us pizza. We loved his food and his prices were affordable for our budget.
The next morning my teammate saw Robert and ran up and asked if we could have dinner with him that night. He agreed. We didn’t realize until later that he agreed to being open on a Sunday night when his shop is usually closed. He was opening just for us. That night 3 of us joined him for dinner. He told us he had been thinking about what he was going to make us all day. He also told us he was excited to eat with us because he hadn’t eaten all day. He decided on nachos, salsa and burritos. They were amazing.
As we sat and enjoyed dinner with Robert, a couple and their daughter came into the cafe. They had the same story we had the first night. They didn’t realize that all the other places require a reservation.
As he did for us, Robert got up and made the family food. Just like we were, they were so grateful.
“Thank you for feeding us they said”.
“You were hungry and I fed you, I hope that one day when I am hungry and I come to you, you feed me.” Robert replied
“Oh yeah sure!” The father said as they headed towards the door. “This is what we would have eaten for dinner” he said pointing to a small candy roll he had in his pocket.
“Here you guys can have it as desert” he said setting it on the table with a laugh.
After they left I asked Robert how many people come in to his cafe with that same story. “Many” he answered.
“What has owning this store taught you about people?”
“Everyone is hungry for something”
Robert, my two teammates and I talked for hours. He told us he believed in God but not Jesus. Jesus to him was just a good teacher who taught good morals.
I think about Robert often. I think about how perfectly his shop was located in town and that it is the first cafe you see with you get into town. I think about how he lights the candles in the darkness and that he provides food to all who are hungry.
He told me he had a “spiritual” connection to me, but what I think he meant to say was that he saw the Holy Spirit inside of me. I won’t ever forget the way he looked at me. His eyes seemed like they desired more, his curiosity created a hunger inside him. It’s ironic to me that the man who gave bread to all who asked, was the one who needed bread the most (the bread of life).
After our long conversation about who God is, I told Robert I see a light inside of him. And I did. I saw a small spark that night that I pray grows into flame. I pray that he would be like the candles in his shop and would shine bright in the darkness.
