My favorite place in Guatemala is the Hospital of Social Works Hermano Pedro. In this place they take care of seniors, adults, youth, children and babies with different disabilities. To be more accurate, the place I enjoy the most is the area where the children with complete paralysis are. I don’t know exactly which their illness is, I had never asked, it is not something relevant for me. Most of them cannot talk, none can walk and some cannot even control their arms, it is the saddest scene you can see. Even worst is the fact they have been abandon by their families, rejected and forgotten.
One year ago I went to the Hospital for the first time, I went for an entire week and kept on crying everyday when I arrived to the place. I didn’t understand why God had them like that, I didn’t understand why God would have created children like that, children without control of themselves , I was mad and felt impotent because I couldn’t do anything, and I couldn’t communicate with them. As time went by, I started to see that even though I saw them defective, God saw them perfect.
Carlos, Angel, Kimberly, Santos and many more stole my heart for many different reasons, and this is what I really want you to keep in your heart. This kids have never sinned, which make them perfect in God’s eyes. Without being able to move, not even being able to talk they share pure love, they share peace, and above all it is what God teaches me through their eyes, JESUS. The love these kids have for me is the most pure love I can experience, is the kind of love that reminds me of God’s love, it does not matter how many times I fail He still loves me, He doesn’t look at my sins; so do they. They love me no matter how many times I make mistakes. I go there to help them, to give them love; and as bad as my day, my week or my life has been just getting there and visiting them changes everything 360 degrees, they fill me with love.
Santos is 7 years old but looks like a 2 years old, he is super tiny and super sweet. He cannot do anything but show his tongue and make some noises, so every time I go I try to hug him and feed him, I like to have him in my arms in order to see through this little angel eyes everything God wants to show me.
Carlos, Carlos is my son, so I feel it in my heart. I can be with him for hours and hours, just holding his hand, giving him a ride in his wheelchair. He loves to hold my hand, he always smiles at me and laughs with me, I talk and talk to him even though he cannot answer but I know he understands me, I pray for him, blessing his life, I also sing to him because he really likes that. Carlos has lived in the hospital since he was 2 years old, now he is 10, and his mother abandoned him when he was 5. Carlos fills my life with love as I try to fill his too, I don’t need his words to know the love is mutual.
This is Carlos holding my hand 🙂
Something incredible happened last week, Carlos talked to me for the first time. He started speech therapy one month ago and the first word he told me was “mama”, it was the first time I listened to his voice and my eyes went into tears and I was so proud of him. Carlos taught me to love without prejudice and that it doesn’t matter the illness love is love.
Many people come to the hospital and only see what it is wrong, all the sadness; but I have learned that what God wants us to see is that He loves without prejudice, that He does not make any differences, He doesn’t reject the sick, indeed, through them He shows us the purest and true love.
Next time we see anyone with a physical discapacity or anyone with an illness, let’s don’t see their imperfections through our eyes, buy let’s see how perfect they are through Jesus eyes and the kind of love they have to give.
