About half way through our visit Mercy took us to her Chaplain’s office to pick up some crayons for the children. She told me that she was down to the last of the crayons and colouring books which the children love and showed me the small woven bowl in which broken crayons were strewn. “There are no more green crayons” she said. “I’m not sure why...” We had already agreed to meet again in the afternoon because I had told her that I had a few things for her for the children at Bethany from the St. Vincent community. She was not prepared for what I would late walk in with.
I hauled all of the items that so many members of our community had given me in the weeks leading up to my departure into one large woven bag (the kind of bag that would hold firewood or coal). I separated the colouring books into one bag, the pencils, erasers, markers, and sharpeners into another, books for reading into another, balls and paddles into another, the games, and the small copies of the New Testament written in plain language and 16 CDs of the New Testament that had been read and recorded that I brought over in my suitcase and packed them all carefully into the large bag. I hauled the bag down the red clay path to the main road and along the road into the hospital to meet Mercy. I am so thankful for the fact that the hospital is downhill from the house I am staying because the air is so thin at 7300 ft above sea level that exertion takes the breath away!
I met Mercy and we went into her office and I unpacked everything in front of her so that she would know what everything was. The look on her face when I started pulling out the books and balls was incredible. She put her hand over her mouth and watched as I kept reaching in and pulling out new things for the children. By the time I pulled out the 25 packs of crayons that I brought over, her eyes welled up with tears. She claimed that the arrival and timing of these gifts was a miracle of sorts because she didn’t know what she was going to do as they ran out of everything. She talked about putting her faith in the Lord though as the provider and saw our contribution as another example of being provided for when needed most. She was delighted by the Canada stickers, pens, and paddles (which were a huge hit on the ward – see the photos attached!), and was really thankful for the pocket sized versions of the New Testament and the CDs of the New Testament being read aloud. I signed the inside of every book and bible: To – Bethany Kids, From – St. Vincent Catholic Elementary School, Oakville, Ontario, Canada, Date – Nov. 19th, 2008.
I have some soccer balls that have been earmarked for the local school which I know are going to be a huge hit. Soccer is massively popular here in Kenya and I am delighted to report that here in Africa, Arsenal is by far the most supported Premiership team. I just had to mention that. Thank you so much for all of the contributions of the generous gifts for these children. It meant more to them and to Mercy who has dedicated herself to caring for them then we could have imagined when we started to collect a few things for me to bring over. The good thing for me is despite a few items I’ve purchased for my wife Sarah and Fiona, my suitcase is going to be very light coming home. It will be a big change from being personally responsible for three suitcases with ventilators, drugs, and children’s items on the way over to bringing back one half empty case. Please see the attached photos of some of the children holding onto the Canada paddles Mercy gave them. They really were a big hit!
I put up two posts with photos so don't forget to scroll down after you've finished with this post to read about my trip around the hospital with Mercy, the Hospital's Chaplain.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment