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Merienda Mercy and Life-Giving Laundry
7/5/09
We wait in hope for the LORD; he is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name. (Psalm 33:20-21)
We have now been in Manila for two weeks.
This second week at our sites has included a whole new host of learning opportunities, challenges, laughter, and tears. Many of us are struggling with sickness (fevers, coughs, fatigue), which is not pleasant in such hot temperatures in rooms with fifteen kids running around. Tammie had a near run-in with disaster, tumbling out of a moving jeepney on her twenty-fourth birthday. Thank God she’s okay.
This week we continue to struggle with the brokenness we see around us.
Every Saturday, Samaritana has "fellowship" - a four-hour meeting with women who are currently in prostitution and are part of the child sponsorship program. Jess, Jenn, and Kat are in charge of watching the twelve children who speak no English.
A little boy came in who was mentally handicapped and had an eye condition, which made him look like he was always crying. Why wouldn’t he be crying? Jess reflected. His mother is a prostitute, his father doesn’t know he exists or doesn’t want him, and his mental condition is probably a result of his mother’s work - forced to drink and surrounded by smoke every night in bars.
The other children in the room teased him mercilessly. Yet this little child of God still had the grace to share his merienda (afternoon snack) with the very children who were teasing him. In moments like these, we find God in the brokenness of Manila.
We are also learning more about finding joy in simple, daily tasks. We fold into the daily life rhythms of our communities: laundry, dishes, cooking, going to the market, sweeping.
A highlight of this week for me was a huge laundry day on Thursday. We cleared everything out of our downstairs room (which normally serves as kitchen/living room/dining room) and proceeded to wash all of the sheets and pillowcases, turning the tile floor into a washboard.
It was a festive atmosphere, with soap suds and water everywhere. The radio blared music, and the girls scrubbed away, “accidentally” splashing each other every now and then. Laundry has never been so life-giving and fun!
It seems incredible that laughter and joy exist in the people we meet, who have experienced such pain. Only by the grace of God are the girls and boys we work with at Onesimo. Many of them still have siblings scavenging on the streets of Manila.
Team times to debrief are much needed and looked forward to. The boys on our team often see each other for basketball games, and the four of us Onesimo girls live walking distance from each other. Sharing, worshiping, and praying together helps us remember how awesome the God we serve is!
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