Conversation… Sitting down with someone, making small talk, asking how their day was, asking about their dreams, their goals… Conversation. It is something I definitely took for granted in the states.
That has been one of the hardest things for me in my 2 and 1/2 months on the race. I miss being able to walk up to people and just have a conversation, get to know them and find out how they are really doing without having to have someone interpret it for me. It has also been a place where the enemy has been attacking me big time. “Oh you can’t make a difference, you don’t even speak the same language…how can you do anything that’s going to have a lasting impact for Gods Kingdom.” I know it’s a lie as soon as the thought pops into my head, but I can’t lie that it is discouraging sometimes. I have been trying to learn the language and picking up new phrases and sentences along the way, but it doesn’t make this struggle any less difficult.
However, last month a lady named Rosa changed my outlook on it. Rosa worked and lived at the feeding center where we were staying for the month and she was always there to help us with things we needed. She spoke no English but she was always so friendly to each us. After we would hand wash our clothes she would always offer to help us dry them and she always served us lunch with the biggest smile on her face.
Throughout the month I would try and have conversations with her but we never got far past “hola, como estas?” But about half way through the month I realized that those were some of my favorite moments of the day, even if it was just a simple hello in passing. She always carried such a joy in heart, and when I was around her even if we didn’t speak at all, I would find myself happier, more full of joy. As I was reflecting on that at the end of the month I realized that yeah words are great, but when you don’t have that you still have love. You have the love of God in you that isn’t crippled by different languages, it is present inside each of us for the whole world to see. I don’t know much about Rosa other than what other people have told me or communicated through her to me but even if I didn’t have that I would know without a question that she is filled with the Holy Spirit. You can see how much she cares for the kids that come to the feeding center each day, how she cares for her family, how she cared about us like we were family, and how she cared for the church. When you look at Rosa you don’t just simply see a hard working woman (which she very much is) but you see God. You see the love and unexplainable joy that he has placed in her heart. You can tell that no matter what life may throw at her she will always trust in The Lord and that will never be shaken.
I was filled with so much joy this month and I am so grateful to Rosa for the way she taught me that each day brings a new reason to be joyful. My life will forever be impacted by her and the way she approaches life.
Thank you Rosa for all you do and the way you love God with all your heart and soul!
