Filed under: Community, Faith, Joy, Kids, Prayer, Ramblings, Reflection | Tags: cavite, elim, Faith, God, Jesus, Kids, Life, Love, rosario
It’s true that you can’t realize how fortunate you are in spite of all the hardships and trials you go through… UNTIL you see others who are in worse situations than what you’re in.
You think the world has conspired against you… that the walls around you are crumbling… that you cannot bear any more problems than what you are already trying to endure.
I have been recently serving at “Elim Missions”… and Rosario, Cavite has been the location assigned to me. This has been a total eye-opener and an awakening experience.
Let me just tell you… things are pretty bad over there. The conditions that most of our dwellers are living in is just terrible! Each child over there has his/her own story to tell… mostly sad and tragic ones. Elim Rosario dwellers mostly come from “Dreamland”… a huge dumpsite area that also doubles as a home for poverty-stricken families and individuals. As if that wasn’t enough, their area is completely devoid of electricity and clean water.
Over at the church where we hold our services, these kids would usually gather around us and play with us. Try carrying them once and hold them in your arms… you’d soon notice that they literally don’t want to let go. You can tell that they lack a great amount of love and attention from their parents and relatives.
I met this one kid, 13 years old, in the care of the parish priest of that town… he saw his father shot to death in front of him… his mother soon after joined another man… and he’s been maltreated and frequently thrown out the window by his stepfather… totally abandoned and forgotten by his mother.
Seems like a scene right out of a tragic drama movie, right?
Funny how we complain about so many things… petty things most of the time, in fact… no soda, no time for a coffee break, bad airconditioning, a low-end cellphone, soiled clothes, a banged-up car… things like that. And we think that life has conspired against us to put us in the situation we’re in.
We are so caught up with ourselves that we become oblivious to what happens around us. It’s all a matter of perspective…
Look around you… the reason you’re probably able to read this blog entry is because you either have your own computer and Internet connection, surfing in the comforts of your own home… or you’re seated in an Internet cafe and can afford to pay the hourly surfing fee to check your mail. Either way, you’re better off than most of the kids I’ve been meeting during our mission service… way better.
So, if you’re one who loves to sulk in your own private corner, feeling pity on yourself… thinking of how you can’t seem to comprehend life’s “so called” injustices on you… try reevaluating your situation through the eyes of those kids who would do anything just to have a little taste of the life YOU ARE IN.
