Over the last few weeks our team has been working with Pan de Vida in Quito, Ecuador. This ministry has many facets. Their main concern is to meet a need and share the love of Jesus. We quickly found ourselves doing home visits for some of the people that have been coming to Pan de Vida for their food distribution programs and have asked for further assistance.
One morning the bell at the gate rang and a serious, young man was waiting to guide us to his house. His home was over an hour away, by bus, he had made this trip alone in order to arrive at Pan de Vida before 8:30am. This young man is 11 years old. His name is Sebastian. Sebastian navigated the bus system in this city of around 2 million people with ease while keeping an eye on the three of us ladies. We had two bus changes and took a taxi the last bit of the incredibly steep hill to his home. Upon our arrival we were greeted by nine of the 10 other people who live in his four room home. The 11 in his family sleep in three rooms with four beds. There is a kitchen area which has a stove/oven, refrigerator, kitchen table and a wicker shelf which holds most of the clothes for the family.
This little guy took great care of us three ladies and walked us back to the main road where we could find our way to our next stop. I was so impressed with his willingness to help during our visit in any way he could and to include Esther and myself even though communication between us was difficult.
A week later, at Pan de Vida we were helping with a VBS of sorts. Kids would come after school, get a hot lunch, worship (those dances we learned in Ventanilla came in handy), time for homework, a lesson with craft time and some time to play outside.
I was thrilled to see Sebastian! He brought his adorable sister. It was so fun to see them interact in a playful environment with friends.
This was a new Sebastian, I hadn´t seen him behave like a child. He played soccer with some of the other boys, he chased girls around a swing set, played games, and laughed!
At his home, it appeared he was ´the man of the house´ he held and cared for his baby sister, he showed us around the city as well as his home. It was clear he holds a lot of responsibility.
Over the next four days Sebastian and I grew to be friends, we have a ´secret´ handshake. He would call me from across the room to sit together.
Saturday afternoon I told him I would see him this Wednesday at the food distribution program. He agreed he would be there, he even came straight from school. We were all pleasantly surprised when he asked if he could use the computer to check his Facebook. That meant that there is a possibility we could keep in touch! I let him use my phone so that we could add each other as friends.
Last night, I had to say goodbye to him. I choked back tears as I told him that would most likely be the last time I see him. He held my hand but barely made eye contact. He agreed to a hug and a photo but didn´t say much else. We did our handshake and it was time for him to leave with his mother.
All evening I thought of him, hoping and praying for the man he will become someday. Wondering if he will even care to check in on Facebook or if that was just to humor me, hoping the new team that will be working with Pan de Vida over the next few months will see what I see in him, that they will take the time to know him (but please, please don´t let him forget me).
This morning, when we reached a WiFi zone, I had a notification from him. An emoji of tears streaming down a face. Me too buddy, me too.
Heart. Broken.
