A while ago a friend wrote to me saying ‘it must be very sad sometimes…’ given where I am, what I am witnessing and the seemingly small steps that I can take to help contribute…
‘Sure’, I wrote her back, ‘the pain and the suffering here are often very close… I find that among other things this journey is a very great lesson in non-judgement for me… if I stay in a broad kind of acceptance….I find it very easy and natural to stay in a place of Love and then I find I am very strong, I am peaceful and joyful sharing myself heart to heart with others, doing what I can…’
Some days I am better at it than others! Yesterday, for instance, is a day when I polarized in judgement. And I wept hard for it and tangled myself all up in feelings centered around my perceived inability to relieve some of the pain and suffering of a young, very sick boy. Watching his face contort as he took small calculated steps, leaning his chin on his crutch for balance with every limp onward, knowing that earlier in the day, coming from a village in the mountains where I visited him last week, he had taken hundreds of such steps up a steep, winding path and down a narrow ravined road to reach some kind of over crowded transportation that brought him to the center in Mbale for a check up, knowing that he is orphaned and has a rare incurable cancer, is HIV+, knowing that after our time together he would make the very long, slow and painful journey back to the place where he stays…
Today I awaken re-membering… there, in my mind set of yesterday, I was choosing separation, to think I was so utterly incapable of offering something to this boy. The night has gently re-minded me to connect with my heart to see and feel what he offers to me… and then, to see what we offer each other… and then… to under-stand, all of our steps lead us where we are to be… and then, I arrive at Connection and Oneness… and then here… in Gratitude, Peace, Joy and Love… step, step, step by sometimes, very small step.
Thank you Dear Child for shining Your Beautiful Light so BRIGHTLY! Thank you Creator for the Unlimited Blessings showering upon us ALL!
Do you recall reading about Tom and his sister’s 5 orphan children… Please meet his 4 nieces and 1 nephew… Ivan, Kasede, Angela, Lydia and Doreen… pictured here just before they all received their new school uniforms, back packs, scribblers, pens, pencils and math sets…
I am happy to share, Tom starts his new 2’nd job on March 1st and will be earning an additional 60,000 shillings per month on top
of the 30,000 he makes from his current job ( about $53 total). It is planned that he will increase his poultry business substantially over time and as a result grow in his ability to afford future school related costs for all the children, expenses we have been able to help them with for this year.
When they were leaving my compound they all turned round to see me and waved bye-bye and then, to my eye, seemed to kind of magically ‘float’ happily on their way, as it happened, into the beautiful Light of the setting sun!
Celebrating the LOVE that we ALL are, Cath xoxo
