19/4/11 (Honduras
Day 18. World Race Day 103)
I am heartbroken for the boys. Just thinking about the fact
that they may never ever experience a parent’s love in their lifetime breaks my
heart. And yes there are a few that Tony ‘takes care’ of, but how many more are
in that town? The young boys that live on their own, no one in the house to
take care of them or feed them. Their house full of trash. It just seems so
unfair to me. It makes me so sad.
FROM A HUMAN PERSPECTIVE THEY MAY NEVER RECEIVE LOVE, BUT
GOD’S LOVE, WHICH TRANSCENDS ALL UNDERSTANDING, CAN TOUCH THEM.
That is my hope.
Let me introduce to you some of the boys.
This is Steven (12 years old) and his little brother Carlos
(9).
Steven is a businessman. He has his own can of candies and
sells them to people and to us whenever we go to Los Pinos. One night when we
were serving dinner on the farm, Steven said that he wasn’t hungry and didn’t
want any dinner. I was a bit surprised because these boys are always hungry but
I didn’t think too much of it. Turns out that he didn’t want dinner so that his
portion could be given to his little brother. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! This little
kid, who hardly gets any food, is willing to give it up for his brother! How
many of us hoard food because we selfishly want it for ourselves?
This is Luis (14).
First impression of him is that he is a little punk with his
tank top and hat. His mom lives close by but he doesn’t see her at all. We’re
not sure what his relationship is with her. His father lives 20 minutes away
but is an alcoholic. I don’t think they see each other regularly. Him and Ariel
come to help out on the farm every weekend to earn some money.
I’ve really grown to
love this boy. We had so much fun in the kitchen on Saturday when he helped me
to make dinner. He was cutting onions and his eyes just got so watery and he
was literally tearing. But never once did he complain. On Sunday we went to the
church in Los Pinos along with all the boys that came on the farm during the
weekend. The younger kids didn’t stay in church at all and they kept telling
Luis to go outside as well. But Luis stayed strong and said that he wanted to
stay in church with us. At 11am, he asked Tony for permission to leave because he
was meeting up with his uncle and he is going to spend time this week with his
dad. Now this might not sound like anything to you, but for him to ask Tony for
permission to leave the service instead of just walking out shows so much of
his character. Tony told us later that he walked out with him and told him that
he needs to tell his dad that he wants to spend time with him. He needs to take
the initiative. Luis just cried and cried because he desires so much to have a
relationship with his dad. He just wants to be loved. I just pray that God will
restore the relationship between them.
*Update on 25/4/11 (Honduras Day
24, last night in Honduras. World Race Day 109)
Luis ended up only spending one day
with his dad and it was a bad day because his dad was in a bad mood. He then
left to stay with his grandmother. Sigh.
Ariel (16)
He is the sweetest boy ever. He is well behaved and he
respects people. But when you ask him a serious question, he hides himself
behind a joke. Part of the reason is because he is always so well behaved that
he tries to get attention on himself by a little mischief. He loves to help
out, and is always willing to give a helping hand.
Carlos (12) and Fernando (11)
They are Christofer’s brothers. Their mom ‘works’ in a
garbage dump, rummaging through garbage to find whatever she can sell. She
comes home, maybe once a week. I don’t know where their dad is. Now that
Christofer is living on the farm, these two kids live on their own in a filthy one
room house. There is a dog with six
puppies living in a drawer in a corner and a family of ducks in another corner,
IN THE HOUSE. There’s dog poop everywhere, a broken mattress, and a pile of
dirty clothes in one corner. Nobody takes care of them, sometimes they go for
days without food. On the outside, they are wild, unruly kids. I sense a lot of
anger inside of them, probably because they have never been loved before, no
one to welcome back into the house when they get home. They just have to fend
for themselves.
The day we went to visit their house, the dog just had 6 new
puppies born. Their eyes weren’t even open. Fernando took out a drawer from a
broken cupboard in the house, laid a towel over it, and put all the new born
pups in it. This little kid, who has nobody to take care of him, knows how to
take care of others.
Carlos and Fernando’s house.
The boys transferring the puppies to their new ‘home’.
If
you would like to help this ministry and continue the vision in Honduras, Ariel,
Steven and many other kids need sponsoring to help pay for school books,
uniforms, and food. You could sponsor a kid for just $20-25 per month. Email [email protected]
