Weekend Update
Sunday brought an unexpected twist: one of our families in the Hole lost her house (she lives just above the river and part of the foundation of her house was washed away!) In desperation, a "friend" told them they could build on "his "land." Unfortunately, that land was no better than where they were having to flee, and on top of that it was in a major traffic lane. Apparently someone watching called the Civil Defense, who in turn called Victor. When Victor went over to see what was happening and relay the message from the CD to cease building, he was verbally attacked. He called me to let me know what had happened; I was in the middle of preparing a food basket for another family and we decided to give it to this family instead. When I arrived, I discovered that Victor had really taken a beating (verbally). Unfortunately, some of our own church had been part of that. Another church member was extremely upset as she defended Victor. The Civil Defense told them to stop building but they insisted they could, so they called in the police who took the "friend" who was "giving" his land to the Civil Defense office where they told him again that he was not allowed to build there due to the danger of the river. Victor and I also went to the CD with the husband of our church member and on the way, we explained that there was no intent to cause him harm but building where they were building would only lead to the same problem. Finally, things calmed down and they realized Victor had not done anything against them but rather had tried to help.
It was such a wierd experience. Any reasonable person could see that rebuilding where they were working was a waste of money. Yet this "friend" insisted that it was the thing to do and he wasn't going to let anyone stop him. Why he was so rude and offensive to Victor is beyond me, yet I have seen this type of behavior far too often. Desperation leads people to make poor decisions, and when someone points out the down side of those decisions, offense is taken and the frustration and desperation of the moment leads to very abusive attacks. (I have been the recipient of these attacks too!) And there are always "friends" standing by who like to agitate the situation. Unfortunately, it causes people to not want to get involved and help; who wants to get involved when the likely result is getting attacked by the very people you are trying to help? And yet, as I saw yesterday, these people really need our help. When we had calmed the situation down and had a chance to talk, Rosa admitted that her problem was she felt so alone and desperate with no where to live that it depressed her. My heart goes out to her, and also to Victor and those like him who seek to help those in such desperate conditions. Pray with me for patience and resolve for people like Victor as they help the poor and powerless despite the personal cost.
Saturday was a wash out, literally. It rained and rained, which hindered participation in our worship services. (We had changed to Saturday because Sunday was Mother's Day and most people travel.) Our Sunday school had prepared some special things for Mother's. While not many Mother's came, we had a good time and celebrated the high calling of being a Mother.
I pray you are all enjoying a quiet, safe holiday.
