It’s the month of love. People falling in and out of love; people searching for love; people wishing they had love; people rekindling the flame of love from years passed. Flowers, chocolates, teddy bears, and jewelry are being purchased like it’s going to burst into flames on the 15th. Reservations are being made for expensive candlelight dinners and the girls are gleaming. Kids are passing out candy hearts and making homemade valentine cards. All the single people are sitting on the couch in their sweats eating as much chocolate as possible and counting down the hours for it to end!
This is what usually consumes our month of February. However, this month was different for me. Love was absolutely present, but in a way I didn’t expect. Unfortunately there were no pink roses, heart shaped skittles containers or a pink monkey that dances to MC Hammer like last year (Thanks mom J). But there was something much better. I fell in love with a beautiful woman called Heom. Let me attempt to tell you a love story that will be difficult to capture in words but will move your heart in a way roses cannot.
Heom is a lovely woman who lives out in a remote village in Cambodia. Her husband, Nei, and her have four children, are Buddhist and speak no English. They have been married for 28 years (something absolutely worth celebrating). Both of their parents, and many other relatives were murdered in the genocide, The Killing Fields back in the 70’s. They, like many Cambodian people, have lost loved ones and are still recovering from this horrible event.
I stumbled upon her hut by accident, well so I thought, on a prayer walk one morning. We had been walking for over 30 minutes and finally picked a house to stop at. Now looking back, I can see that God had been ordaining my steps the entire time. We met her husband; he was busy carving a piece of wood for a trailer he was building. We struck up conversation and began to learn more about them. He had been sick and lost his job. To help bring in money for the family, Heom makes a dessert each morning and sells it in the market and to the neighbors.
I went and visited them each morning. Every day I learned something new and began to love her more. This woman is incredible! She is a wonderful cook and utilizes everything in her yard. She grinds up rice to make flour, uses the palm tree sugar to sweeten things, cracks open fresh coconuts, shaves them and makes milk as a topping! Plus, she does all this over an open fire outside. I have been surprised and intrigued every morning, learning new things I will try once I get home. She makes the most of what she has. After spending hours making this dessert, she walks all over the place selling it to neighbors, market owners and friends nearby.
For the first few weeks, I just spent time with her and started building a friendship. This is so important in this culture. I would answer her questions and ask her some in return. I am thankful for my wonderful translators! Although, there were many times we would share smiles and laughs without any words spoken. I could feel my heart getting more and more attached as the days passed on. I knew goodbye would be painful, but I didn’t care, I wanted to spend as much time with her as I could. It’s like we had this connection that couldn’t be explained. She couldn’t understand a word I said, but it’s like she could feel the love in my heart towards her. One day, nearly 2 weeks after our meeting, she hugged me goodbye and kissed my cheek. Huge tears began bellowing in my eyes, I was fighting to hold them back – she loves me! I returned a kiss to her cheek and scurried off before she could see me cry. It’s true what they say; love needs NO translation.
My heart was filled with joy that cannot be described really. To have won the heart of this precious woman was illuminating! The next few days were even more wonderful. Because I had a relationship built with her, it opened the door for me to share Jesus with her. You see, she had never heard of Jesus before. But she told me that she could see something different in us. She could feel a love that she hadn’t felt before. She said she trusted me now and that opened the door to pray for her and explain more about the gospel! On our last day, we were able to give her a Bible in her language. As a going away present, she made us a very special Cambodian dessert cake. It took her nearly 5 hours to make it! That is true love. She said it wasn’t much and she wish she could do more, but to me it might as well have been gold.
This is why I signed up for the race. This is why I love to travel. This is the reason I do everything I do. If ONE life could be touched by the love of Jesus that changed my life, then my entire existence is worth it. I will carry Heom with me in my heart and I will never forget her. I know she says that I touched her life, but in all honesty she impacted mine in a way I will never forget. This is a true love story; proving that a little bit of love really can do a lot.
We are it people. We are the advertisement of our Savior. Wherever you are at today, find someone to share that love with. Some people will never come to church, listen to a pastor or read their Bible. They’re reading your life and watching how you live. Let’s be the LOVE God called us to be in our broken world.
