day four...
bible school was utterly overwhelming. singing and storytelling went well, but by the time we got supplies out, there were so many kids (150?) sitting in every available space that there was not even room to walk in the room. i found myself suddenly swamped with kids grabbing and yelling, and me without words to respond. if they so intently wanted a few ribbons, how much more intense was their need for necessities--food, safety, love? in that moment of being physically confined by a crowd of small children, yelling my name, hanging on my arms and my back, dozens of hands grabbing, i saw and felt the crushing pressure of poverty in communities like las flores... and the pressure i could empathize with was probably a small fraction of what these children and their parents feel.
maria told us that in the fields where most of the people in las flores who can work do, they get paid about 200 pesos a day (about $9) but food of a family of five is about 500 pesos. if there is no work that day, most families go without food.
on the way home...
the last few days were filled with intense activity and illness (i caught a cold or sinus infection that knocked me out a bit). the last day of bible school went much better than the day before (there were significantly fewer kids) and we closed the week with a baseball game with men from the community. thankfully it was not americanos vs. domincanos, but rather they split us up and we had fun. we had a closing ceremony in las flores that wrapped up the week in prayer and more play time with the kids.
for me, this summer is about discerning a way to be as opposed to what to do. the thing is, the kids who i spent the week with and asked if i was coming back, the women who opened their homes to us, they know nothing of what i "do." all that matters is that i am there, sharing in God's love with them.
i saw last week how the greatest act of worship is to embody the love that God gives us.
this experience is digging deep into my heart and is one that i will ponder for a long time to come.
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