Last week one of my friends and I went into the slums next to one of
the preschools where we are working. As we were walking around a lady
(we will call here Sue) came out of her house to greet us. There is so
much I would love to tell you about Sue and her family, but I just can
not even come close to bringing it full justice in a couple paragraphs.
So I will just tell you a little bit. She is a believer, but her
husband is not and she is not allowed to be a believer, so she does not
“believe” in front of him. She reads when she is at work since she is
not allowed to at home. Sue has two sons. The older is a believer, but
like his mom, to please his their dad, he does not show that he
believes in front of their dad. But when their dad leaves the house,
they talk to and read about their true dad. The youngest son, who is
only seven years old, refuses to act like he is not a believer. While
the rest of the family is “Hindu” this little boy refuses to
participate in anything that has to do with any gods because they are
not his god. One day his family was eating at their aunts house and the
food, before it was eaten was in front of idol statues and even though
they had not eaten all day, this little boy who was starving refused to
eat a bit of food simply because it had been in the presence of gods.
He refuses to enter temples. His family (especially his dads side)
tries to bribe him to participate in rituals with some of his favorite
things, but this little boy does not want any of that. He does not care
about the price he has to pay, he refuses to ever bow down to any of
their gods. When his dad is yelling at him and is mad at him, this
little boy responds by talking to his true dad about the situation.
When he talks to his true dad, he gets down on his knees with his hands
in the air and his eyes clinched shut. This little boy fears no one,
but the one. This little boy will not offer one bit of himself to
anyone or anything but his god. This little boy has the faith that I
pray for everyday. He is an inspiration to my life and the relationship
I have with my father. This little boy has faith that can move the
mountains!
