Perspective

It’s true that you can’t realize how fortunate you are in spite of all the hardships and trials you go through… UNTIL you see others who are in worse situations than what you’re in.

You think the world has conspired against you… that the walls around you are crumbling… that you cannot bear any more problems than what you are already trying to endure.

I have been recently serving at “Elim Missions”… and Rosario, Cavite has been the location assigned to me.  This has been a total eye-opener and an awakening experience.

Let me just tell you… things are pretty bad over there.  And when I say “pretty”, that means “very”!  Each child over there has a different story to tell… mostly sad and tragic ones.  Elim Rosario dwellers mostly come from “Dreamland” (the dumpsite area far from the commercial real estate district of Rosario) which was recently devastated by a super typhoon) and other places nearby that house indigents.

The kids gather around us and once you carry them and hold them in your arms, they literally don’t want to let go.  You can tell that they lack a great amount of love from their parents and relatives.

I met this one kid, 13 years old, in the care of the parish priest of that town… he saw his father shot to death in front of him… his mother soon after joined another man… and he’s been maltreated and frequently thrown out the window by his stepfather… totally abandoned and forgotten by his mother.

Tell me now… do you still think the world has ganged up on you…?  Do you feel like you can’t take any more?

Look around you… the reason you’re probably able to read this blog entry is because you either have your own computer and Internet connection, surfing in the comforts of your own home… or you’re seated in an Internet cafe and can afford to pay the hourly surfing fee to check your mail.  Either way, you’re better off than most of the kids I’ve been meeting during our mission service… way better.

So, if you’re one who loves to sulk in your own private corner, feeling pity on yourself… thinking of how you can’t seem to comprehend life’s “so called” injustices on you… try reevaluating your situation through the eyes of those kids who would do anything just to have a little taste of the life YOU ARE IN.

Tags: cavite, elim, Faith, God, Jesus, kids, Life, Love, rosario