Each time I leave, even for a few days, seems like I've been gone forever. One thing I noticed different about this return, however, was that it seemed that the kids expected me to come back this time and were anticipating my arrival. That's very different from the first few times I was gone for a few days, where some of the kids seemed almost angry that I'd been gone, and others were just indifferent to my return. Guess they are figuring out that I'm here for the long haul.
My housemate Jenny came along to Hermano Pedro today, and we took Henry and Julio out to lunch. Both these kids are very intelligent, and we could carry on great conversations with them. Henry even speaks quiet a bit of English due to Dick's influence. Julio is new to the orphanage, and I was looking forward to seeing how he would do out in the community.
If I had any doubts, they were futile. As soon as I asked him if he wanted to go to Pollo Campero, he started bouncing around, repeating "pollo." He laughed and giggled all the way to the restaurant. Once inside, he knew exactly what he wanted to eat. When the food came it was a real treat to watch this young man who is usually fed pureed food eat his meal with a fork, needing only a little help. He was so excited to have silverware that he even insisted on eating his french fries with his fork.
You may wonder why this seems such a big deal to me. It's not because Julio is able to do this. I thought that he would. I am excited about him having a chance to eat on his own because he seldom has the opportunity to do so. I was more excited that I was able to be a part of making this happen. And I enjoyed even more his pride in doing this. For a child who has few opportunities to exercise his independence, I was so pleased he still wanted to do things on his own. This gives me much hope for what we will be able to do together this "summer" since he is staying at the orphanage over vacation.
When we returned, the boys wanted to play outside in front of the building for a while. It was fun watching them dart in and out among the people standing around. It was more fun to watch the people as they looked somewhat amazed that these two kids in wheelchairs were actually playing, almost like "normal" kids. One of the men who caught my attention was the father of a young man in a wheelchair. He seemed surprised that we were allowing the boys such freedom. As I spoke with him, I looked down and saw the wheelchair his son, Santos, was sitting in. The chair was old, had only one ripped arm rest, no foot rests, and was about two sizes too large for the boy.
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| Dick and Santos in his old chair |
Hoping they could attend a Bethel distribution, I asked where they lived. In Patzun, Peten, many hours from Antigua. I didn't know when a distribution would be in their area, but knew it would not be soon. I called Dick to see what he thought and discovered he was inside Hermano Pedro. He came out, took one look at the boy and his chair, and was on the phone to Hope Haven Ministries to see if they could bring a chair for this boy today.
Gustavo, one of the men working at the Hope Haven factory, who himself is in a wheelchair, was delighted to do so. Within an hour the young man had a new chair, and looked as proud of his new "set of wheels" as any teen in the States is of their new car.
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| Trying the chair on for size |
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| Santos with his "new wheels" |
What is amazing to me about this is the number of people and ministries involved which made this happen. If Henry and Julio had not wanted to play, I never would have spoken to the man, or paid any attention to his son's chair. If Dick had not been there, the call would not have been made. If Hope Haven had not generously given a chair without any questions, the boy would have had to wait many months for a chair. But we have a God who has perfect timing and all these things came together for His glory. It was a good day!
(By the way, the chair Gustavo brought without ever seeing this young man fit him perfectly! Another Godincident!)
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