Modern World 20
1 Every morning when I wake up, I peel back the blankets that keep my body warmth hostage and look around my room. I see cherished family photos, my favorite mahogany dresser and of course my love beads that hang from the windows. I can’t imagine my life without a loving family surrounding me or a roof shielding me from the night.
2 This past July, I went on a mission trip to Monterrey, Mexico, with my youth group. I sat on a bus for two days, not knowing what to expect. My friends on the bus described all the bugs that had infested the orphanages we were to work at for the next week. They told me how dirty everything would be and how dangerous the streets were. Secretly, I was hoping the bus would turn around somehow. But it did not. The first night we arrived, a man said, “We have come here to change Mexico, but instead, Mexico will change us.”
3 Each morning during the hour-and-a-half bus ride to the orphanage, I would think of how little I had slept the night before, how tired I was, and how there was no air conditioning on the bus. But, as soon as the orphanage came into view, all those feelings melted away. The children would run up to the gates, scream, and jump up and down because we had finally arrived. The first day I walked cautiously inside the metal gates. I saw one girl with a huge smile on her face. When I walked over to her, she gave me a hug. I looked around at all the other children. All were smiling. All were laughing. They were not upset, nor complaining about their lives and living conditions.
4 I met a little girl at the orphanage named Erica. She had short black hair and a big scar beneath her nose. I picked her up and swung her around. She squealed with laughter. Every day when we arrived, she always ran up to me, gave me a hug and kissed my cheeks. I began looking forward to this.
5 The whole time, I was thinking, Who would give such a wonderful child up? I saw other children in the orphanage. They did not fight over the toys we brought them. Instead, they shared them because they wanted everyone to experience the joy of the new toys.
6 On the last day, the kids were singing songs to us. Rose, the lady in charge, told us that one of the children wanted to share her story with us. To my amazement, Erica went up to speak. She smiled at me and began her story: “I am so happy to be here in the orphanage.” Happy, I thought. Who would be happy to be in an orphanage? “When I was in my house,” she continued, “my parents used to beat me. They threw me against the wall and hurt me.”
7 When she was done, I ran over to tell her how proud I was of her. I looked down and saw the scar near her nose. Now I knew how she got the scar near her nose.
8 The day we left is a day I’ll never forget. Everyone was crying. I held Erica for fifteen minutes, too scared to put her down. I kissed her scar, hoping, once more, to erase her memories. I told her I loved her. She stopped crying and smiled. When our time with the children was done, they waved once again through the gates. This time it was good-bye.
9 When I came home, I looked in my room while unpacking. I looked at all my clothes hanging in my closet on multicolored hangers. The visions of Erica’s closet with two shirts in it flashed before my eyes. She tried to give me one of her stuffed animals in return for my friendship. I told her I did not need one. She said she didn’t either because she had two. Erica is only seven. It will take me a long time to learn what she already knows.
2 This past July, I went on a mission trip to Monterrey, Mexico, with my youth group. I sat on a bus for two days, not knowing what to expect. My friends on the bus described all the bugs that had infested the orphanages we were to work at for the next week. They told me how dirty everything would be and how dangerous the streets were. Secretly, I was hoping the bus would turn around somehow. But it did not. The first night we arrived, a man said, “We have come here to change Mexico, but instead, Mexico will change us.”
3 Each morning during the hour-and-a-half bus ride to the orphanage, I would think of how little I had slept the night before, how tired I was, and how there was no air conditioning on the bus. But, as soon as the orphanage came into view, all those feelings melted away. The children would run up to the gates, scream, and jump up and down because we had finally arrived. The first day I walked cautiously inside the metal gates. I saw one girl with a huge smile on her face. When I walked over to her, she gave me a hug. I looked around at all the other children. All were smiling. All were laughing. They were not upset, nor complaining about their lives and living conditions.
4 I met a little girl at the orphanage named Erica. She had short black hair and a big scar beneath her nose. I picked her up and swung her around. She squealed with laughter. Every day when we arrived, she always ran up to me, gave me a hug and kissed my cheeks. I began looking forward to this.
5 The whole time, I was thinking, Who would give such a wonderful child up? I saw other children in the orphanage. They did not fight over the toys we brought them. Instead, they shared them because they wanted everyone to experience the joy of the new toys.
6 On the last day, the kids were singing songs to us. Rose, the lady in charge, told us that one of the children wanted to share her story with us. To my amazement, Erica went up to speak. She smiled at me and began her story: “I am so happy to be here in the orphanage.” Happy, I thought. Who would be happy to be in an orphanage? “When I was in my house,” she continued, “my parents used to beat me. They threw me against the wall and hurt me.”
7 When she was done, I ran over to tell her how proud I was of her. I looked down and saw the scar near her nose. Now I knew how she got the scar near her nose.
8 The day we left is a day I’ll never forget. Everyone was crying. I held Erica for fifteen minutes, too scared to put her down. I kissed her scar, hoping, once more, to erase her memories. I told her I loved her. She stopped crying and smiled. When our time with the children was done, they waved once again through the gates. This time it was good-bye.
9 When I came home, I looked in my room while unpacking. I looked at all my clothes hanging in my closet on multicolored hangers. The visions of Erica’s closet with two shirts in it flashed before my eyes. She tried to give me one of her stuffed animals in return for my friendship. I told her I did not need one. She said she didn’t either because she had two. Erica is only seven. It will take me a long time to learn what she already knows.
コメント
コメントを投稿