It’s 97 degrees, the sun is beating down, and the mosquitoes are feasting. While most people would be inclined to rest in the shade, and ideally near a fan, you can find Soyn in her straw hat clearing land, watering crops, planting, and harvesting.
She works hard because she has to. She takes her harvest to the market and sells what she can; most days she is happy to make the equivalent of 1 US dollar.
Soyn is a farmer, a mother, and a provider. She lost her husband and 2 of her children; they had a condition that caused their muscles to weaken and eventually they passed. Even as I type that I have to stop and let it sink in… such big losses for one little lady to handle. But she knows Jesus and finds her joy there.
Her remaining daughter Kay has the same disease, and is only able to walk far enough to slowly climb into her wheelchair. Just 2 years ago Kay was helping her mother in the garden, and now she hasn’t left her home in over a year. Even though Kay has every reason to feel defeated you can find her ready to greet visitors with a big smile on her face.
That grin of hers has a way of breaking the language barrier. Communicating presents many challenges and can be awkward, but we struggle through, speaking mainly in smiles.
Everywhere we go, our eyes are opened to how people live all over the world. A lot of times, my mind wanders to a place where I think, “ugh, if she was in America, her family could have been on medication, and maybe she wouldn’t be a widower who outlived two of her kids, and she wouldn’t have to spend all day farming crops that only bring in a few dollars.”
But then, I snap back to reality. I can’t live in an imaginary world where I fly everyone home and make sure they’re all taken care of. What our team can do now is show Kay and Soyn love through service; we only cleared 1 field, but that was one field Soyn didn’t have to clear all by herself. More importantly, we can offer prayer and company to Soyn and Kay. We can laugh with them. We show them that they are seen and loved. We can pray fervently for their needs.
-Megan + Ryan
