Working at the refugee camp everyone developed a job or task that they liked more than any other task… More often than not, people did not love guarding a gate. It makes sense though, 8 hours of opening and closing a gate for people gets a old real fast. But I was one of the weird ones. I liked guarding gates because you just get to talk to people as they pass by, you get to learn a little about their language and culture, and you often times get food or tea brought to you. More than any other gate, I LOVED guarding Section B. Section B is the section filled with all the unaccompanied minor boys.
These boys range any where from 7 to 17, and have made it to the camp often times without any sort of family or friends. They managed to escape their home countries and pursue a better life for themselves, even if that did mean leaving their own comforts. These boys are brave. Put yourself in their shoes and you will most likely come to a harsh realization that they’ve experienced more in their life than most of us. They are warriors, doing what they can to get to make things happen for themselves. Despite what they’ve been through, these boys are protectors. It was not uncommon for a fight to break out while working at camp, but if you were working Section B you would feel protected because they often make a wall around you to make sure nothing happens. These boys are full of joy. They’ve probably been through hell and back, but that doesn’t stop them from having more authentic joy than most Americans I know. Their smiles are contagious and the sounds of their laughter is like music to my ears. They LOVE to dance. There were many instances where I was pulled into the middle of a circle with middle eastern music blasting, all trying to get me to dance for them. They will hang out with you for hours, even though you can literally only understand one word they say. They hung around for hours with no other reason than to be with you. They will make you feel like a million bucks when they run up screaming your name and hello, even if that is the third or fourth time you’ve seen them within the hour. These boys were the highlight of most days in camp, even if it was to drop in and say hello for 10 minutes.
These boys I’ve gotten to know over the past month will forever have a place in my heart.
Marty- Marty is from Tunisia, and he is probably the kid that I had the softest heart for. He is 17, but has the maturity of a 23 year old. He was well loved by everyone in Section B and by the staff that worked there, but spent much of his time hanging out in the nearest city. He loved to be by himself, but also loved being with one or two other people. His laugh was one that I’ll play over again in my head because of the pure joy that it brought.
Aaron- Aaron is from Morocco. This kid was 17 and had more country pride than anyone that I’ve ever met. He loved to talk about his country and where his favorite places were. He loved music, Justin Bieber specifically, and he has the biggest smile of anyone I’ve ever met.
Ayden- This kid was from Iran. He was the one I spent the most time with, simply because he spent so many hours just hanging out with me at the gate. He didn’t speak much English, but that didn’t stop the attempts at conversation. You could tell that family was the most important thing to him, mainly because his goal is to move to Belgium to be with his brother.
Morgan- Morgan was the protector. He’s from Syria and was 15 years old. He didn’t speak any english at all, but that didn’t stop us from laughing with each other consistently. He was very protective over me and anyone messing with me. He was the one that consistently made sure I was warm, fed, and entertained. His goal is to move to Germany and be with Uncles and cousins.
Mark- Mark and Morgan are best friends. Mark is 16 and speaks a lot of english. He loved to learn more about the US and my family, but never really liked to talk about his family. He loved to dance and was often the ring leader when it came to the dance circles.
Franco- This kid is a genius. He is from Afghanistan and wants to be a computer programmer. His goal is to eventually move to Russia to work with other computer geniuses. He spoke excellent english and we got to have many conversations about the differences between our home countries. He loved to talk to me about his friends and family, but you could tell he missed them terribly.
I could go on forever about so many of these boys because every single one of them left a lasting impact on me. From the volleyball, to the water bottle flipping, the dance parties, the Farcy and Arabic lessons, and the random coffee and tea these memories will not be soon forgotten.
Continue to pray for these kids. They have so much of their lives ahead of them and I want nothing but the best for them.
In Him,
Caleb Callaway
P.S. These names are not their actual names for protection reasons!
In other news, I AM FULLY FUNDED!!! I finally completed this part of my journey and I am so overjoyed by the love and support I have received from everyone! Continue to pray for me as I have just under 8 months of this journey left!
I have made it to Malaysia!!! This month, the men of X-squad are all together serving in the village of Karak, Malaysia working at an adult special needs facility. Pray that we continue to reflect Jesus in everything we do as we have made it to the second region of our journey around the world!
Thank you!
