I journal everyday and can never find the right words to express what’s happening over here.
Sometimes, I get this flash, this glimpses of what they’re feeling. As if a bullet of their energy hits me and pierces my heart, making it pound a little faster. Other times, I think that if I were to let myself truly feel the weight of what’s happening, I’d break.
The other night, I had this dream.
People were slipping beneath the dark blue surface and I just watched them.
I couldn’t save any of them.
That dream is not far from my reality. I can’t save anyone.
Only God can.
And if these people are strong enough to go through this.
Then, I have to be strong enough to watch it from the front seat.
This island isn’t much bigger than my island back home. Picture O’ahu with smaller rolling green hills like you’ve seen on PS I Love You, a vastly smaller more spread out population, 2-3 story pastel painted manor-style homes with red tiled roofs and window trim, and a beautiful stone castle at the top of the hill. Lesvos, Greece. Just 4 miles from Turkey, our charming town of Molivos is known for it’s beautiful olive orchards and beaches that rake in tourists during the summertime.
But not this summer…
The Greek economy took a huge plunge and the 10’s of thousands of refugees landing on the island each month are not attracting tourists.
Beaches where you once found families enjoying the hotsprings and newlyweds jet skiing are now covered in lifejackets, popped rubber rafts, lost clothes, and the occasional dead body.
I won’t speculate on why the Syrian government/militants and ISIS are killing these beautiful people and forcing them to flea their country or where they’re getting the mass amount of weapons to do so, because there are a lot of evil powers at play and the problem is complex.
Here’s what I do know…
There are an estimated 2.4 million people who have travelled to Turkey and are waiting for available rafts on those beaches right in front of me, across the water.
I can clearly see Turkey when I look out on the ocean.
An estimated 250,000 have died so far.
There are an estimated 8 million people who are waiting to come over from Syria.
In August alone, 45,000 refugees made the 4 mile trip on a rubber raft through the choppy Aegean Sea to make the escape from Turkey (Asia) to our island of Lesvos (Europe).
4 miles may not seem very long, but on a 10 person rubber raft, with 50+ people (some of which get sea sick and couldn’t swim if their life depended on it) and no captain to man the boat and no direction of where to land on Lesvos- this is the marathon of a lifetime.
Depending on where they’re coming from and which country’s borders are closed along the way, some of these people have been walking for over a month with little food and water, carrying their babies and toddlers in their tired arms.
I’ve come across 3 women 9 months pregnant in my short time here. About 10 babies are born a day on the journey.
These people are peaceful and just want to get to safety.
Sometimes I imagine what these crowds of thousands would act like if they were Americans. I’d like to think, anyone would be this nice and peaceful when they’re in need of basic survival necessities, but I really think it’s a cultural thing.
I’m thankful that I’ve been blessed to get to know these people.
Syrians, Afghanis, Iranians, Iraqis, Yemenis, and even Somalians.
Some Syrians are frustrated with the people from other countries and consider them to be piggy backing off of their crisis, which is understandable. But some of these people from the other countries are running from war zones or running from economic slavery.
All I can really say is that I don’t believe this is part of God’s plan. This isn’t “natural selection.”
These are intelligent, hard working people who deserve a life as good as yours.
This is a complex problem with a big picture involving a lot of politics and over 10 countries. Whether they are migrants or refugees, these people are risking all of their money, their lives, and their children’s lives to get somewhere safer with more opportunity.
The sad reality is that a lot of them may be sent back or die along the way.
The journey from Syria to Germany/Sweden/Belgium is extremely cold and tiring and asylum isn’t guaranteed.
If the political problems were fixed from the top down, this could be over in a day.
If not, this could go on another 6 years..
What we can do is:
Pray that the death toll goes down as winter creeps in.
Pray that this is miraculously resolved soon.
Spend your time loving people, because the tables could turn and this could be your life one day. We are not immune to this.
The beautiful thing is that we get to be here with these people on their worst day and bring out their smiles.
We get to be a sense of comfort through water, food, blankets, and shelter for the night.
I’m constantly inspired by these people and reminded how blessed I am.
I’ve been given a new perspective and that is priceless.
..And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. Romans 5:2-4
