I know, crazy, right? What missionary ever says they feel anything but adoration for children? But it’s true. I’ve never loved kids. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy them from time to time, but I’ve never had the passion for them that so many around me seem to feel.
This all changed at Hope House, where a seven year old stole my heart.
Siyabonga is a young man of very few words, but the love he shows towards all of us is phenomenal. His caregiver told me the other day that I was like his mother. Like. His. Mother. In what world am I qualified enough to be a stand in mother?!
I am obsessed with this kid. If I did nothing for the next two months but held him, that would be okay with me. He’s taught me so much from his quiet companionship and joy.
I think that this little boy is in my life for a lot of reasons, but most of all, I think the Lord wanted my heart to be stretched. It isn’t easy for me to love kids. It’s even harder for me to love kids that may be terminally ill. But I’m doing it. And that, my friends, is pretty dang cool.
