One morning last week, we decided that we needed more firewood out of the forest. The cook needed wood to cook the meals and the girls were out of wood to heat their water tanks (so they could have hot water for showers, ect.).
Alex (18 years old, one of the boys that lives here) hands me a peice of rope and we start to head down the hill into the forest… 700 feet later, we reach the bottom of the hill where their are piles of chopped up limbs ready to be carried up. He makes a bundle for each of us using the rope. Their about as big as you can wrap your arms around. Then we start walking back up the hill with the wood slung around on our back (slower than when we came down of course). We get to the top when the bundle seems twice as heavy as when we started. But all in all it wasn't that bad. Until he says we need more. It turns out to be a lot more.
After dropping off the 5th load with Alex, I'm starting to feel it. My heavy breathing and sweat pouring off my face makes him laugh.
"Come on, the little ninos could have done that!" he says.
I blamed my heavy breathing on the fact that the ministry is just under 7,000 ft. above sea level. I don't think he bought it. But he definitely had fun watching me go back down for 3 or 4 more loads. We have enough firewood for the rest of the week I'm sure!
At the end of the day, I found myself about to pass out from exhaustion on my bed, my back is all scratched up from all the bark pressing on it. Alex wakes me up and says, "Let's go." I figure he's going to the "tienda" (a small step above a lemonade stand) to get some bread or a drink, but he's never invited me to go with him before.
Sure enough we're walking on the dirt road about 1000 yards to the tienda. Both pretty tired but enjoying the fact that we're walking with no firewood on our back.
We start talking about small things… school, soccer, where he's been, where he wants to go… just casual stuff really. Talked a little about God but not much. We get to the tienda and HE buys me a drink and bread! But that's when I realized what I did with him today. I EARNED MY RIGHT TO BE HEARD. Anyone who's familiar with Young Life knows this saying and knows, with teenagers, you can't just walk up and talk to them about life right away. You have to earn their trust and friendship.
If I had walked away at any point during the firewood hikes, he probably wouldn't have asked me to go with him. And we wouldn't have had such a great time afterwards on our walk to the store. But instead, God opened the door and let me into his life. We walked back from the tienda sharing stories and laughing uncontrollably from our sugar high. It was a good day. Can't wait to see what the last week here will bring!
