Mondays Offering....A Little Boy named Christian

(a view from the hill)
As I drove to the market

yesterday morning

I thought about how easy it was

for me to do this.

*how easily I left my beautiful home;

dressed warmly for the lingering winter chill

(one our way to the centre)

*how I got into my car;

one 
of the two vehicles that we own

* how I backed out of the driveway, 

getting the full view of our well maintained home&yard 

*how the road I drove on was wide and smooth

(a view from our apartment deck using the telephoto lense)

*how the Sunday morning stillness

 hung in the air peacefully  

*how I drove to the market at ease

without thought or worry 

knowing that there was money

to buy what I needed

and maybe even enough to buy something

I did not need

(street side fruit stands)

*how I walked into the market

abundance with fresh fruits and vegetables

a cooler case filled with a variety of
milks 
cheeses
yogurts
eggs

a deli counter abundant with all sorts of meats

and grocery aisles abundance with not only daily necessities

but also many specialty items

and delicacies from all over the world

(morning moments of solitude, prayer, and reflection helped me keep grounded)

I acknowledged this amazing ease

that I live with

this great abundance

and in honour of my kids in Colombia

I gave thanks

deep

 soulful

 tear-stained

 thanks

for these simple things

that I live with.

This is Christian

( Christian when I first met him last year)

a VERY lively 6 year old.

I met him for the first time last year

He came to get a hair cut

Rigth away I knew there where some challenges

that Christian lived with

physically there was a deformity in his legs

and his eyes were not alined

but his spirit was all there!

I remember his coming into my "studio"

ready to get his hair cut NOW, 

not realizing there was a line.

Please keep in mind that children in Colombia

look 2-3 years behind the standard North American child

        They are more often than not, 

much smaller than our children

So when this little spit fire

came into my space letting me know

he was ready with his determined voice

and HUGE brown eyes

I fell in love immediately.

My assistant Noami let him know

he would have to wait

and he did so very willingly

When it was his turn

he was desperate to talk to me

he rattled on and on

oh my goodness, I laughed and laughed

trying to let him know I did not understand

He stopped

looked at me with his big eyes

with a vision of disbelief/confusion swirling with in them

and then

proceeded to ramble on again

he cracked me up

His spirit was undeniable.

Later...

I heard his story.
*

He was born with these deformities

because while she was pregnant with him

his mother had tried to abort him

by tying a belt around her belly
*

When you meet Christian

you understand why his mother was not successful

His desire to live and live loud

is written all over 
him!

His two sponsors...two teenage sisters...

raised money to Christian could get corrective surgery

on his deformed legs in order to help

him walk with more ease.

His surgery happened when we were in Colombia, 

and it was successful.

 (going to Christians home to see how he is doing
his is the one in the middle...a number of families share this home)

(the roof is tin while the back wall is 75% wood and 25% tarp. 
Christian shares this room with his mother and brother)

It was him you bought the medicine for.

Like all things

expenses have a way of growing 

and Christian needed his pain medication

paid for

$100

you

took care of that.  

(You can see the walls open to the outside where they meet....
Christina was in good spirits when we came to see him)

Christian was brought home 2 days after his surgery

his spirits not dampened

He will remain in the casts for 6 weeks

and then start physiotherapy.

 I look forward to seeing him running to the centre

when I return
as I am sure is two amazing sponsors are too.

Christian depics what a strong spirit can bring to the world

even in the face of such hardship

He is a bright light

one we want to help nurture and grow at the centre  

Christian is exactly the child

that if given a chance

will make long term changes amongst his people

when you are in his presence

you feel it.

(he is upset here because he wanted to take a picture with the phone...
so many things about us humans is universal, no matter where we live!)

His mother is young

and alone

he is her second son...

but with what we hope to offer kids like him

at the community center

we hope to lift him up, and give him a foundation

him

and all the children of poverty

are so desperately in need of.

    Delicate flowers
remain delicate
even after they are discarded...


Love and Light to you my lovelies
thank you for reading...