At that very hour some Pharisees came, and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” And he said to them, “Go and tell that fox, Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I finish my course. Nevertheless I must go on my way today and tomorrow and the day following; for it cannot be that a prophet should perish away from Jerusalem.”
Luke 13:31-33

We spent a week with our goddaughters. It is a miracle that they are now living here in Brazil now. It was something completely unexpected. The last time we saw them was in Singapore about ten years ago when they were just 3 and 2. Now they are living in the capital of Brazil and old enough to ask serious questions. They know that we are working with children and teens just like them. Since we are their godparents, they sense a close and yet indirect connection with the homeless children. They were curious about them. They are learning that life is not always fair. One of the many questions they asked about was our personal safety. They wanted to know if our lives were in danger. To be honest, I never thought about it. Well, at least, not recently.

They remembered the time when a mentally-ill woman tried to set me on fire. They asked about this. I did not have much to say about it. It seemed a lot time ago. Strangely, I wasn’t traumatized by the event. There was another occasion where a man attempted to kidnap a woman at the steps of the Cathedral where we sit and wait for the children. It ended with a shoot out and two men dead. One of them was a homeless man who happened to be there and made an attempt to rescue the woman. It occurred exactly at the time when we usually meet the children. However, on that particular day, we had to make an emergency trip to the States because Mary’s mother was seriously ill and she died consequently. The death of a loved one saved us from encountering death in the streets.

During the course of the week, we visited a historic church constructed in the 1700s in a tiny UNESCO Heritage town in a state above São Paulo. The entrance of the church bore the words, Memento Mori which literally means “remember death”. It is a forgotten tradition in modernity. It used to be common for the church to remind us of our personal mortality before we enter the sanctuary.

Today, we pretend that death can be overcome if we don’t talk or think about it. The tradition of “Memento Mori” is contrary to this idea. It tells us that death is inevitable and we encouraged to confront it face to face. The vestiges of this attitude is evident in our Ash Wednesday liturgy; “You are dust and unto dust you shall return.” It is a time of repentance which does not mean feeling sorry for our sin. It is changing our lives. The reality of our impending death helps us evaluate the quality of the life we are living. In many cases, repentance is a salvation from wasting our precious moments away.

One of life’s many paradoxes is that our awareness of our mortality helps us live our lives more completely. This Truth is not restricted to Christianity. Epicurean and Stoic philosophies which were prominent in Jesus’ time also came to the same conclusion.

The Pharisee warned Jesus of an imminent death. It is quite simple. The fear of death is universal. Consequently, it is the best way to control the behavior of someone. Governments use it. Religious authorities use it. Your common criminals use it. Businesses use it. People have constructed their lives around fear. We are convinced that if we live in gated communities, our lives will be secure from a certain death. I live in a neighborhood that is dangerous in the evenings. Therefore, our apartment building has a night guard. Everything is there to ensure us that we are safe from death. Jesus Himself, on several occasions, avoided certain places because it was dangerous for him. There is nothing wrong from keeping ourselves safe. However, we cannot stop living our life in order to be safe from death.

Jesus talked about abundant life. Today, many have reduced abundant life to financial well-being. Neither Jesus nor his disciples were affluent but they lived a complete life. They lived a meaningful existence. Jesus was completely aware of who He is. He was a prophet and healer. He was aware of his imminent death which was intricately linked with his ultimate vocation. The fear of death was not going to hinder him from living His life to the fullness. Jesus discovered His significance in this life and it helped Him to overcome His fear of death. We must not forget that Jesus was 100 percent human like us and therefore, He was subjected to all our fears and weaknesses.

Our mortality is scary. Anyone who says that they are not afraid of death is not really telling the truth or are immature. I used to be one of them. I used to think that I could face death fearlessly. Now, I am older and perhaps a little wiser. The reality of death has dawned upon me. This is a good thing. It is helping me discover my life. Jesus never wasted His time on fear because death was imminent. Instead, He spent His time building upon the foundation of Life. He brought Life to those around him. He spoke the words of healing and forgiveness to those who downtrodden by death. His knowledge of His imminent death transformed Him into an agent of Life to those around Him.

In the streets, death manifests itself in different stages. There are people who spend their whole day in a drunken stupor so that they can avoid facing life. Our children and teens use intoxicants to escape their pain and suffering. There is the danger of violence. There is the presence of hatred which seems to be growing stronger each day. However, in this death-inducing environment, God has opened our eyes to see life. While the world tends to act and believe that death is more powerful than life, the gospel proves otherwise. Death cannot hinder the manifestation of Love revealed in the Gospel. However, in order for us to discover this Truth, we have to cast out our fear of death. We cannot allow our fear dominate our actions. At the same time, we cannot create a artificial premise that when we step out in faith and face the dangers of death, we will escape unscathed. Jesus said,
‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. (John 15:20)

Jesus did not escape death but his death brought life to millions. We are all going to die. Therefore, it is essential that we live our lives in a way that promotes life in this world.

Living an abundant life doesn’t mean living a life in the spotlight. It is just living a Life that is meaningful. The world may not notice what we do or how we live. Our names will not be written in history books. It doesn’t matter. All these things don’t matter when we reflect on our mortality. Our time is short and we have to live our lives in the place God has placed us. We need to move forward and trust that God will show us how to live our lives to the fullness.

Sergio is a young teenager with some mental challenges, who has been spending time with us lately. We are not sure if his challenges are organic or consequences of neglect. He used be one of the most aggressive teens in the streets. He used to get into fights daily and some of the teens were even afraid of him. However, he has changed recently. He has been spending more time with us. He has stopped his aggressive behavior and sometimes he sits and waits for us like yesterday. It was raining and he asked if we could do something together and he insisted that we go to a sheltered area. On the way there, he said quite randomly, “You are very special to me. You are like my parents and uncle and aunty.” He stayed and colored with us for an hour. We discovered what it means to have abundant life in the simple words of Sergio. Death looms around the corner but it cannot overcome Life that is found in Love.

Jesus took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray. As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. Two men, Moses and Elijah, appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure,[a] which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem. Peter and his companions were very sleepy, but when they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. (Luke 9:28-32)
The next day, when they came down from the mountain, a large crowd met him. A man in the crowd called out, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, for he is my only child. A spirit seizes him and he suddenly screams; it throws him into convulsions so that he foams at the mouth. It scarcely ever leaves him and is destroying him.
(Luke 9: 38-39)

Felipe was already waiting for us when we arrived. It was 7 am. About a year ago, we would have never thought that any of our youth could keep an appointment at this time of the day. Most of them would be sleeping at this time. Survival demands that they stay awake when it is dark and sleep when it is light. Felipe’s life has changed drastically over the past year. The change was gradual. I already wrote about it once but it is worth telling the story again. Some things need to be told several times in several different ways to be fully appreciated.

A year ago, Felipe was using paint thinner and, on occasions, cocaine. Something that he has done since the age of 10. He used to be very shy and insecure. Sometimes he isolated himself from everyone. He once told us that he did not understand why he did this. We suspected depression. Initially, we thought that he would be one of the young people that would spend their whole life in the streets. He always was a very considerate and caring young man but he never showed any desire to seek a different life. The homeless life was the only reality he knew.

A couple of days ago, he called me and asked if he could borrow a small amount of money from me. He only had rice in his tiny room in an abandoned building which was occupied by other squatters like himself. The place is infested with scorpions and his room is dark and noisy. He also has four children to feed from the ages of 3 months to twelve. Three belong to his wife and the youngest is his. However, he is a father to all of them. He will get his first paycheck in a week’s time. He used to beg in the streets to get money for food but now he decided that he needs to change and stop doing this. He repeated several times in the message that he will pay me back right away. For many, this situation would be considered a nightmare. For Felipe, it represented a positive change for him. He has a job. He has a family. He has a responsibility to find a way to feed his girlfriend’s children and his infant son. All this has given new meaning for his existence. It has brought harmony to his once chaotic life.

We brought the money to him and he apologized profusely. He thought that it was a shameful thing to ask for money from us. This was strange because he used to beg for money all the time. However, today he was a different man. In reality, his salary is not going to be enough for him to live on. He is going to need help for a while. We told him that we were glad that he called us. We wanted him to know that God has placed us here to give the support that he needs to find significance in his life. He smiled and said that we were going to make him cry. We did not lend him the money. It was our gift to him which he refused initially. He wanted it to be a loan. Mary explained that we wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for the kind and generous gifts we receive from people. Therefore, we are merely passing on what we received. He hugged us. Before he left, we made plans to meet him at 7 a.m. in two days time to go the military office. In Brazil, every young man has to register to serve in the army. However, only a few are chosen to serve and the rest have to participate in a special ceremony to swear allegiance to the flag. Only then, they will get the final document allowing them to work. Felipe was lacking this final piece of the bureaucratic puzzle. The company that he was working for cannot officially employ him until he gets this final document. He wanted us to accompany him this ceremony.

The ceremony lasted for a few minutes. We went for breakfast together. Felipe was glowing with hope. He was talking about how he was getting in touch with his father after ten years. His father was in prison for many years. It was the impetus that drove him and his brother to the streets. We never met his brother. He got lost in the judicial system. However, now his father is in a different place. Felipe got in touch with him. It seems like he is getting reconciled with his family. He showed some pictures of his mother and siblings. A older woman sat at the next table and eavesdropped on our conversation. When she heard Felipe talking about his infant child, she finally said that Felipe was too young to be father. He smiled and showed her the picture of his infant child. The old Felipe would have never done this. He would have recoiled from any human contact. We spent the whole morning with him and it was such a spiritually enriching time. It was our moment of the transfiguration where we saw God’s face in the life of Felipe. However, the story doesn’t end here. We have to come down from the mountain.

We saw another young man whom we haven’t seen for years. It was Igor. I wrote about him about five years ago. He was making some progress in his life then. He was beginning to hope for something better. However, we eventually lost contact with him. There was almost a year of complete silence. Today, he surprised us in the streets.

We playing games with the children and he came up to us and asked if he recognized him. It was a joy to see him. He gave the biggest and longest hug we ever received from anyone in the streets. He told us almost immediately that all is not well with him. He has always been honest with us. He told us that his life was complicated now and he was not in a good spiritual place. Obviously he was doing well financially. He was well-dressed and looked very healthy. He asked us if we had lunch. I believe that he wanted to take us out for lunch. However, it was already three o’clock. There was something similar and different about Igor. While we were talking, some of the children were sniffing paint thinner near us. Igor stood up and told them not to do such things near our presence and they needed to respect us. The children and teens put their bottles of paint thinner away and left the area. This was when it was obvious that Igor is connected with the gang. In another circumstance, we would be discouraged with this new development. However, something has changed within us. Maybe Felipe has something to do with this change. We have seen God’s face in Felipe’s life. It has brought reaffirmed hope in us. We are hopeful for Igor. He could have avoided us. Instead he chose to look us up. He wanted us to spend time with us. He made sure that we knew that the time and energy we spent on him was not wasted. He cherishes us. We cherish him too.

Two young men that we have known for a long time. Two young men who have become very important to us. They are both success stories. They know that they have someone who loves them. Felipe is trying to find his way in this world and Igor knows that he has taken the wrong path. They both have to discover how to walk in harmony with God’s presence in this world. They are beginning to discover the right tools. Igor is lost for the moment but he knows that he needs to find his way back. At the present moment things look uncertain and fragile but the same God whom we saw in Felipe’s life is also present in Igor’s life. Both young men need people to remind that God beckons them through love to walk in harmony with Him.

This is our transfiguration encounter this week.

We sit and wait..we sit and wait..we sit and wait. The children and teens come and go. Some never speak to us. Some talk with us. They become our friends. Sometimes drugs and crime snatch them away from us, disrupting our relationship. Thankfully, most of the time, this is only something temporary. Crime and drugs cannot overcome love. We have seen this before. We need to allow things to run their cycle. There is nothing concrete for us to do except to sit and wait.

Sometimes good people have asked us what do we hope to achieve with all this waiting? It is quite a hard question to answer. I am still waiting to find out. At first, I felt little uncomfortable saying this. Now, I have grown accustomed to waiting. Sometimes I see something unfold which makes me want to say, “This is it! This is what we have been waiting to happen!” However, I have learned my lesson. I need to be cautious. I don’t want to grab hold of the first thing that happens to just to show people that we are doing something worthwhile here. We have waited too long to just grab at anything that comes by. All this waiting had not made us desperate. Strangely it has made us more hopeful and joyful. We enjoy waiting for the children. They appreciate having someone waiting for them. Maybe God does not want us to wait for anything. Maybe He just wants us to be. I am not sure about this; we just have to wait and see.

Wallace found us waiting for the teens. Wellington was with him. We have known them both for almost six years. However, Wellington lacked the courage to approach us for a favor. He hardly did anything with us. He was always polite but hardly spoke to us. Among the children, he is known as “Neckless” because his poor posture. I have verified that he does have a neck. He is only known by his nickname in the streets but he wanted us to only address him as Wellington. Wallace was going to be advocate. Wellington thought that we would help him if Wallace put in a good word for him. His request was simple. He wanted to get all his documents*. He was in the detention center for selling drugs. Now, he is sick and tired of that life. As soon as he was released, he walked into a store almost randomly and asked the owner if he needed someone to run errands. He was honest with the owner and told him about his criminal past. Now he wanted a chance to work and leave all criminal activities in the past. The man decided to give him the opportunity. He has seen Wellington before. However, he needed all his documents to work. In Brazil, before you work, you need about five documents from different governmental agencies. The children and teens usually have none. They don’t even have their identity cards. Usually parents help their children to navigate through the complex bureaucratic process. For teens and children in this streets, the very idea of entering these government buildings paralyzes them.

We went to all the agencies with Wellington. It gave us a lot of quality time with him. He told us about his mother who is crack addict. She was never able to do anything for him. He had to fend for himself since he was a little child. Now, he wants to do things the right way. He was determined. He was grateful for our help and relieved that everything went well. He gave us a big warm hug for helping him.

A few weeks later, another teenager Renan came up to us. He had the same request. He told us that Felipe and Wellington told him that we could help him. Renan also found a job. He was going to deliver periodicals. He was another teen that hardly spoke to us. The most significant interaction I had with him was an altercation. We were doing an activity with teens and he kept interrupting to ask one of the teens for drugs. I spoke to him firmly not to interrupt, perhaps a little too strong. He understood that I was upset with him. He came the next day wanting to know if we would play a game with him. After a short game, he got up and left with a big smile on his face. He knew everything was fine between us. It was his way of apologizing. This was months ago. After this incident, he hardly spoke to us. Now, he wants to work. He wants a new life.

Renan asked if we could help with all the documents. He admitted that he was little unsure about doing it on his own. It was the first time he really opened himself up to us. We discovered a shy and insecure ten year old hiding in his 18 year old body. We went to the respective offices and the lady attending to us asked me if he was my son. It was a strange question. We don’t look anything like each other. Besides, a lot of social workers help people with their documents. Therefore, what was the difference in our situation? Perhaps, all the years of sitting and waiting has created some spiritual bond between us and the children that is apparent to those on the outside. I don’t know, maybe it is just wishful thinking.

Renan “reported” to Felipe that we helped him. Then we receive a call from Felipe. His infant son is in the hospital. Felipe just became a father and the child has transformed his life. He started work this week. He still hasn’t got all his documents. One is still missing. He needed our assistance. We met him and he told us about his new work. He is very excited that he has a job. The pay is extremely low; hardly enough to pay for two weeks of food. Felipe doesn’t seem to care. For him, this is a victorious change in his life. He is taking his first step in becoming a responsible father. Felipe is feeling hopeful about life, not just Felipe, but Wellington and Renan. They don’t have to beg or steal or engage in any criminal activity anymore. A new horizon has opened for them. They are going forward. They are doing it by helping each other. They carefully looked at all the resources available to them and created their own network of hope. They found their jobs on their own. They did not have a problem asking the owners stores for jobs because they have known them over the years. They begged or loitered in front of their stores. They did not have a problem approaching us to do the work of their parents. They have seen us sitting and waiting for them. They finally found a place for us in their network of hope.

Perhaps, we misunderstood this waiting part. We thought that we were waiting for something to happen but in reality, God wants us to wait for the children to find a place for us in their lives. They want us to be in their lives and thankfully we were there sitting and waiting precisely at the moment when they needed us. Today, we might be helping them face the challenges that they fear; tomorrow, it might change. We just have to sit and wait and discover what role we will play in the future. In the meantime, the waiting feels hopeful and joyful.

For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw,  each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. 1 Corinthians 3:11-13

Unconsciously we construct our world. We don’t choose the people that become part of who we are. We like to imagine we do but reality is completely different. All of us have had idols in our lives. People we imagined who correspond with who we are.  Eventually these people disappear from our lives and sometimes even from our memory. Their influences just seem like a phase in life’s ever-changing landscape. However, there are people who find their place in our lives without our knowledge. We don’t think about them until they are taken away from us. We feel a little disoriented when their absence becomes evident. It feels as if our foundation has been profoundly disturbed. We never realized that they were part of the fabric of our lives. We cannot explain how and why they are there. When they are gone, we feel something missing that can never be replaced.  

An accident caused a disturbance in our being. A young woman was no more. She was a young preteen when we met her. She hardly spoke to us then. Her parents were our friends and companions in our ministry. They introduced me to this ministry to the homeless children. Her mother played a principal role in Mary’s presence in Brazil. She wrote a simple phrase in a letter to Mary’s father; “We need a summer volunteer who loves children.” Mary said, “yes”, without any hesitation. We found ourselves in the same country doing the same ministry and the perfect environment for love to blossom. However, this post is not about how we met. It is about the young girl in the background that we hardly knew. Somehow she became a fabric of our existence. I don’t know how this happened. It doesn’t matter. It is just one of life’s great mysteries. Many people come and go and some just linger on forever. 

Our thoughts were occupied with prayers and concern the whole of last week. She was hanging onto her life. Like anyone her age, she had a lot to live for. She had a loving husband and a two year old son, not too mention her parents, siblings, countless friends and her students. Everyone cherished her deeply. She touched everyone with her contagious smile and enthusiasm for life. For us, she was always that young girl in the background. We never knew the person that these people have come to appreciate. 

We prayed and pleaded for a miracle. At the same time, our hearts were heavy because we know that we don’t always get what we want. She left this existence peacefully but she did not leave us empty handed. She gave us an intense desire to embrace our existence to the fullest. She lived her life to the fullest and most likely she did not even know it. This is one of life’s paradoxes. The best way to live your life to the fullest is by not trying to do it. Bethany just lived and allowed herself to be who she is. By doing so, she became a source of strength and joy to many. Now they know that the life she lived can never be stolen by death. It is going with us until we depart this space on earth. 

It is strange to feel an emptiness for someone whom we never realized was part of our lives. It even seems awkward to write such a sentence, almost nonsensical. Therefore, it must be real because real life is not always neat and tidy.  People can became part of our lives without being actively involved in our lives. Their simple presence is sufficient. Bethany did not suddenly change and grow up to be a wonderful person. She was always that person but she needed her time to bloom like everyone else. We met her in a time when she was still discovering her joy and peace. Nevertheless, we are glad that we are connected to her in a small way. Now her absence feels painful in our souls. It is good to feel this absence in our souls. It belongs us and us alone. It means that she was real to us.  

Bethany passed away on a Friday. On Monday, we went to the streets as usual. However, this time, Bethany went with us. She sat next to us and reminded us how to live; not to dwell on the non-essentials but just to love those that come to us with their hearts open to receive us. We respected the choice of those who did not have the time for us and focused on those who were ready to share their hearts with us. Such is life. Not everyone is going to love you all the time. However, there is enough reason to celebrate life with the few who love and cherish us.  

Danyel asked me to read from his book. He laid his head on my backpack and closed his eyes. He listened to the story and occasionally opened his eyes to make a brief comment. He stayed in this position for an hour. He was like a little child listening to his father reading to him. This is not work for me. It is a joy to sit and enjoy a young boy whom many forget to enjoy. I loved the fact that he rested his head on my backpack and made me read until my mouth got tired. Then, Felipe walked down the street and asked for our help. He said that he was looking for us all afternoon. He had some problems with his documents. It was something that could be easily done alone. However, Felipe felt secure with us. He did not want to do it alone. We spent about three days trying to sort it out. We didn’t mind it. We were able to spend time with Felipe and he was happy to be with us. It wasn’t work. It was just living our lives. It was enjoying and loving being with the children. They are not homeless children and teens to us. They are our friends and family. We don’t have any relatives in this country. We just have them. For now, they are our lives. Circumstances might change tomorrow. No one knows anything for sure. However, we can be sure that they become part of our existence. As for our existence here in this tiny planet among the vast universe, this is the only life that we know for sure. Life after death is something that we hope for but this life here is what we can sense with our whole being. This is where we discover the abundance that Jesus proclaimed. We have to learn to give our all to what is before us. 

I can’t really explain how Bethany has helped me see this. She just lived her life. I don’t want to transform her into a saint.  She was simply Bethany who filled the spaces available to her with joy. This is something we can all do. This is our path to discover life. She has helped us renew this desire for life. It is strange that it came through her passing. Life is indeed strange. Perhaps its beauty lies in its strangeness and unpredictability. 

And the Lord said, If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamine tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you. Luke 17:6

It was quite unexpected. We haven’t seen him for a long time. Perhaps the occasional “hello” and “hugs” as he passed through the area where we work. We haven’t any quality time with him for almost a year. In our ministry, we pray and wait for special encounters with the children that become etched into our souls. Nothing sensational or spectacular needs to happen. It occurs through the grace of God where suddenly we sense our souls being united through God’s love. We become eternally connected with each other. Even though these instances are a rarity with him these days, we had many with him in the past. It has secured a profound and (God willing) permanent bond between us.

He was in the streets since he was eight. Some traumatic incident brought him to the streets and drove a wedge between him and his mother. He always loved her. He waited for her every Christmas to invite him to her home. Some years she never came. He did not hold any grudges against her. Nevertheless, he needed her to come and invite him. This was, perhaps, the only way he knew that she still wanted him to be part of her life. Something happened that changed his family life forever. He never talked about it. The only thing we know is that his father was sent to prison about the time he ran away to the streets. He came with nothing but his faith of a little child.

He was deeply religious. His understanding about God and Jesus were very basic. He believed that Jesus was God and the source of all goodness. He did not know much about the Bible even though he always carried one in his bag. He loved to read the Psalms. He was just religious but he tried to live out his faith. He was the kindest and most considerate young man among the homeless children and teens. The drug culture is very much part of the homeless life. He was no exception to this rule. He used a lot of drugs. He was constantly sniffing paint thinner and sometimes other things worse. However, he never allowed his addictions to stand in the way of doing something good and loving. We would say that he was the conscience of the children and teens. He kept them from doing wrong things. He protected mentally-challenged homeless adults from being bullied and taken advantage of. The girls trusted him completely. He protected them from being sexually exploited and he demanded that the other boys treated them with respect. He never harbored hatred or bitterness and always was ready to forgive those who offended him. He always made time for us and even apologized when he was too “high”. He considered us and all those who are in the streets to help these children and teens as people sent by God. His childlike faith had a lot of fuel, much more than those who have spent their whole lives in the church.

In the beginning of last year, he got involved with a young woman. She, just like him, was homeless since she was a very young girl. She had three children of her own when they started dating. She is a squatter in an abandoned building. This is quite common in the center and especially among those who are trying to overcome their homelessness. Some of these squatter communities are made up of poor working class people who can’t afford decent housing. They are drug and crime free. Unfortunately, there are a few that are dominated by criminal elements. She lives in one that is mainly made up of families.

He became a family when he started a relationship with her. He took his role as a stepfather seriously. Initially, he was a little unsure about spending all his time with the children. Slowly they conquered his heart. He started changing. He stopped using drugs. He stopped hanging out with the other teens. He eventually moved in with her. He hardly comes to the streets nowadays. However, today was different. He had something special to share with everyone. He held a tiny baby in his arms. It was his son. He came up to us and asked Mary if she wanted to hold his son. When he said this, his face was radiant. He told us that he has stopped using all drugs. Now he is a family man and he wants to do his best for them.

Mary held the sweet baby in her arms. I asked him if I could say a prayer for the child. He agreed smiling and then, he hugged us. They were getting some supplies for the baby. I took out some money and gave it to him. He refused it at first. For him, our relationship wasn’t based on money or personal gain. It was just pure love. I had to tell him that it was a custom to help families with newborn children with their expenses. Everyone does it. Only then, he accepted it. He was excited about the new and wonderful things that were happening in his life. He was not one to be involved in crime and survived all his years in the streets through begging. However, now he wants to set an example for his children. He wants to get a job. He asked us if we could help him with the necessary documentation. He is going to go and find a job no matter what it takes. He finally found the one thing that was missing to help him embrace life. It was the chance to love and care for another person. Now he has a family.

Later in the evening, I received a message on my phone. He discovered a way to connect with me through the social media. He wanted us to visit his home. He also wanted to know that if we would still accompany him in his new journey. I ensured him that we will continue to walk with him. This is all he needed to hear. Everything was new to him. He wanted to make sure that he did not lose the good things from his past. We are grateful that we still have an active place in his life. His story might be familiar to some. You have heard me speak about him. He has always been dear to us. His name is Felipe.

It is the New Year! Some would say that it is just a date. Nothing has really changed. Everything remains the same except the number of the year. Regardless of what we think or feel about the new year, there is a tendency to be reflective at the end and beginning of a year. We ponder about what we have done, what we are doing and, of course, where we are going. We have been here for more than five years. Most of the children whom we met when they were 13 are legally adults (18) now. Most of them still look like kids. They haven’t grown much physically and emotionally. The lack of good nutrition and the frequent abuse of illicit drugs doesn’t help. We ended last year very concerned about their drug usage. The whole of December we found our children sniffing cocaine most days. It is a recent development. They were so drugged out that they were unable to sustain a decent conversation. Maybe they found the end of the year to be overwhelming. Everyone is in a reflective mood and that includes the homeless. It must be painful and difficult for them. They might not have the means or words to express their past, present or future. They rather find ways to escape this tedious task. It was not a good way to end the year. We were hoping the new year might begin different.

It is summer in the Southern Hemisphere. The heat is unbearable. Our children are in the streets. We have to go where they are. There isn’t much choice for us. We have to confront the energy sapping heat to meet our children. There is a place with some shade in the streets. It is on the steps of the cathedral. When they built the Cathedral of Sé at this location, the old center, as it is commonly known here, was the heart of the city’s commerce. The square where the church sits used to be a place where the wealthy used to transit to and fro but today it is where all the homeless people hangout during the day. The old center is abandoned and there are hundreds of vacant buildings to prove its utter neglect. Many families from the marginalized sector of society are squatters in these places. The church remains here even though the prestige of its location is gone and never to be recovered. It has served for us for the past years as our meeting place. This is where the children hang out. There is a fountain nearby where the water should have been drained and cleaned several years ago. It is a cesspool of bacterial activity. On hot days like today, it serves as the private swimming pool for the homeless including our children. The water looks inviting for those who are not aware of the countless ailments that await those who plunge in it. The homeless, they just don’t care. It gives them a reprieve from the unpleasant heat.

No one we knew was around the steps. However, there were teens and children hanging out. They are new. This has been a growing trend. More and more children and teens are making the streets their home. We used to say that there were hundred homeless children in the old center but now the number has increased. The children and teens come from orphanages and some ran away from traumatic environments. They don’t know us personally but they know of us. They are just not sure how to approach us. We sit and wait. They will eventually come when they are ready. Jean walked by and saw us. He is a 13 year old boy who looks like he is 8. It doesn’t help that he acts and talks like an 8 year old too. He wanted to color with us. Slowly a group of teens gathered around us. Then we heard a commotion. A man grabbed hold of a teen by the collar and started punching him furiously. In between the punches he asked for his cell phone. Then he took out a jackknife. We grabbed Jean and moved him away from the scene. Thankfully, the teen broke free and ran away. The man yelled out at the boy and said that he was going to return and kill him.

Jean didn’t seem too disturbed by the incident. He wanted to continue with his coloring. We sat down and talked with him. Then others came up and talked with us. This was our first complete day of the year. This is the environment where we interact with the children and this is where they eat and sleep. This is where God has placed us to testify His presence. Thankfully, scenes as the one I just described are not frequent. It doesn’t make it less unsettling. For children and teens, it is a regular occurrence. Even though we are with them during the day from Monday to Friday, we don’t see things like these very often. Even though, we have been seeing brutal fights breaking almost everywhere even in the neighborhood where we live. We were disturbed by the scene but Jean wants to color. He wants to be a child. God wants us to be his parents for this short moment. We stayed. Soon the other teens whom we knew started appearing.

Wallace asked if we could bring a needle and thread the next day. He ripped his trousers and he wanted to mend them. Then he took out two foreign coins and showed them to us. Some tourist must have given it to him. He asked if we thought they were beautiful. They were. We could figure out that one was from Switzerland. He said that he wanted to give it to us as gift. We accepted it and he put on a wide smile that changed his whole demeanor. He was happy that he could give us something. It made him feel like he was in a genuine relationship with us. Perhaps, this is one of our roles. We are here to receive from the children and teens. It might be something little or simple but it comes with profound spiritual wealth, just like the widow in the story from the gospels.

Wanderson showed up next. He was swimming in the “pool”. It is amazing that he looked all clean despite washing himself in the filthy water. The last time we saw him was on his birthday. He disappeared for a while. He said that he was taking advantage of Christmas activities in different social agencies and churches. “Less time in the streets means less drugs I use.” he said. On his birthday, we took him a restaurant for lunch. It was his request. He wanted to have lunch with us. We did not see him several days prior to his special day. Someone had given him an old worn-out cell phone. He discovered facebook. He was able to access the internet and send me a message. He wanted to confirm our meeting time and place for his special lunch. I told him that we were looking forward to it. Before we said good bye, he said, “I love you guys a lot.” This is the first time we heard any of the teens using this kind of language even between themselves. It is a vocabulary that is not common in the streets. I took it as a Christmas gift from God. Perhaps, this is why we are here; we can help them discover words that they haven’t had the chance to use for a long time.

Suddenly, everything becomes clear. This is a New Year but nothing has changed. We were just needed to remind ourselves who we are and why we are here. There might be many disturbing things that happen this year. It doesn’t change our role here. The children and teens might be using a lot of drugs but our place is still here with them. Jean, Wanderson, and Wallace reminded us why God has placed us here.