As Jesus went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things. Mark 6:34

Taina’s mother recently suffered a stroke. This has catapulted her into adulthood. Technically, Taina is an adult. She is 21 years old. She bears all the signs of an adult woman. She is already a mother of three children. However, there is one important element that changes everything. She was born into homelessness. She had never lived in a house. All her infancy was spent in the streets. Everything she knows is from homelessness. She is street smart but once she is out of the context of homelessness, she is like a child. The so-called regular world is foreign to her. Her mother became homeless as a young teenager. No one really knows why she ended up in the streets but one thing was certain, being homeless was better than her home life. Her mother had five children and all of them where homeless except for brief moments in a shelter. All the fathers are either dead or missing. Her older daughters got married and became squatters in the many abandoned buildings in the city. Taina is the only one who stayed with her mother. Throughout the years, Taina’s mother tried many things to get out of homelessness.

She did not need much. All she wanted was a small room with a bathroom so that her grandchildren can be safe at night. Finally, she found a space. It is a tiny ugly room with moldy walls. It had a bathroom which I rather let my imagine figure out than actually seeing it for myself. However, for Taina’s family, this was a step up. They rented this place for a price that was too high but this is the only option available for the poorest of the poor. We visit them often and she always likes to offer us a hot cup of coffee.

Life has not been fair for her family but they never complain. Now, they are happy that they have a place to live. They often open up their tiny room for the other homeless youth who come by to have meal and sometimes a safe place to sleep. It is amazing to see how people can be crammed into that small space. Her grandchildren commented recently that they never want to sleep in the streets again. This is a good sign that the cycle of homelessness is slowly being ruptured in this family The grandmother promised them that it wouldn’t happen and we are going to do our best to help her keep this promise.

About a month ago, Taina was experiencing severe migraines and her mother decided to take to the public clinic. Another homeless youth, Anderson accompanied them. Taina went in to register and her mother waited outside with Anderson. When she came out, she saw her mother unconscious and Anderson was holding her. He managed to catch her fall before she hit the concrete ground. She was not responding and her face was all distorted. It was obvious she had suffered a stroke. Taina called me immediately at 3 am in the morning. She was sobbing and saying that the doctors thought her mother needed immediate surgery. This is the worst news for our homeless youth. Many of their friends and family who had surgery never came out of it alive. For them, it was a death sentence. Taina thought that she was going to lose her mother forever.

We met the family at the hospital the next day. Her sisters were with her, too. Taina has never dealt with the hospital alone. It was always her mother who handled these things. She wasn’t aware of any of her rights. They were not even allowed to see their mother. We advised her to speak to the social worker for assistance. We encouraged her to be forceful so people would take her seriously and eventually the nurses allowed them to be with their mother. When her sisters left us to be alone with Taina for a moment, she burst into tears. She was so afraid that her mother was going to die. We cried with her and prayed for her. Her mother was discharged in a few days but not because she was ready to go home. The hospital needed the space. Taina had to take her mother home without any wheelchair and without receiving any advice on what do with her partially paralyzed mother. She got her home with the help of some of the homeless youth. They carried her up to their tiny room.

Her mother was completely bed ridden. Taina has to do everything by herself. She cooks and gets all the grandchildren ready for school. Then she cleans and changes her mother. Some of the homeless youth come by and help her carry the mother into the bathroom so that she can have a shower. After she is dressed, the boys carry her back to her bed. We help in whatever ways possible. Some of the neighbors help her too. They stay with her mother when she goes to get the children after school. Some of the youths beg for food and take it over to her place. They make sure that the family always has enough to eat. In one of our regular meetings with her, we asked her if she was getting tired from all these chores. Surprisingly, she said that she enjoyed taking care of her mother. She is just happy that her mother is alive.

Recently, Taina told us that she received some upsetting news. A local pastor informed her that someone had hexed her. After receiving this news, she was so bothered and frustrated. One could imagine that her mind must have been filled with anger and hatred towards this imaginary person. The homeless youth are vulnerable to anything which people of religious authority say to them. They look up to them and believe everything they say. Unfortunately, they are subjected to much abuse as a result. Superstition is very prominent among the general population here. Although Taina had her doubts, she shared this with us. This pastor saw the whole drama which Taina’s family was going through and instead of offering words of encouragement and consolation, she chose to provoke hatred and anger in Taina towards an imaginary person. The worst of it is that it makes Taina suspicious of her friends because according to this pastor, it could be any one of them. This false pastor is an agent of resentment and discord. She told Taina that the only way to be free from this curse is to attend her church.

It is quite sad to see that kind of false gospel being preached to those who are already abandoned and alone in the world. The good news is that we have a Shepherd who does not abandon us to the elements. Instead of helping Taina identify the presence of the Good Shepherd during this momentous passage through the valley of shadow of death, this false shepherd is pointing to the darkness and instilling in Taina fear and despair. We prayed with Taina and assured that our God who created the universe and gave His only Son for our salvation is much more powerful than any hex based on false gods. Taina has more evidence for the goodness of God in her life at this moment than for the presence of any curse. Obviously, if we were to just look superficially at her life, we could only see despair. Taina was born into homelessness. From the moment she came into this world, her life has been hard but she has amazing courage and determination. She is able to recognize God using people around her to help her in this time. She knows that she is not alone and abandoned. Most importantly, for her, Jesus resurrected her mother. Her mother is her Lazarus. She thought that she had lost everything but she had gained her mother back and now she has a renewed zest for life.

She was a sheep without a shepherd. Many false shepherds have tried to install lies into her life. However, the Truth prevails. The Good Shepherd prevails. God has used many people to help her understand that the world might abandon her but God will always be her Shepherd. There will always be passages through the valley of death in our lives; not just for Taina but for all of us. During this period, we should not waste our time asking the wrong questions. The false pastor was trying to make Taina focus on the wrong things. There is no logical explanation for tragic things which happen in our lives. At least, nothing that is satisfactory. However, it is important to know that no matter what happens, the Good Shepherd will always guide us through it. The valley of shadow of Death might seem intimidating to us but the Good Shepherd always guides us through to the banquet of life. Taina and her family know that this banquet is not an illusion. They are eating at its table even though many may not see it. You can not see this reality unless you have faith to perceive the Good Shepherd.

We were all once sheep without a shepherd but the Good Shepherd is eternally present in our lives now.