Vern’s Story of Reintegration
May 15th, 2007 by Jon Posted in Bluefields 2007 | 1 Comment
Last weekend, I was walking down Danforth street in the warm Toronto sun and put on my sunglasses. I realized it was the first time I had worn them during my trip. A flood of memories came back to me, perhaps ones that I had been trying to bury.
I wore my sunglasses all the time in Nicaragua. Working under the sun while doing construction, running the eyeglass clinic in the prison, or when visiting the dump, the sunglasses protected my eyes from more than just sunlight.
When we brought food to the people in the dump I was really glad I had them on. I saw the dump two times before on prior trips, so the emotional impact it had on me was minor. I had learned to accept what I had saw. But when we stepped into the dump and brought them food, it was a whole different story. To be there, in the same place as them. It was as close to living in the dump as you would want to get.
I can accept that these people’s lives are in this dump. Right now them and many like them around the world are living and eating off of what the city is throwing away, for they themselves have been also been cast away and forgotten.
I can accept that children that are born and raised in the dump are still happy. Its all about perspective, and those kids, being kids will be happy because they don’t realize what else there is for them. To them, that is life, and they can still find happiness in it although we can’t when we compare it to what we know.
What I couldn’t stand was seeing a teenager with a baby standing in the dump. It hit me hard because I’m a teacher, and she was no older than my own students. We were reminded earlier of the cruel cycle that happens here. The women get pregnant, the men run off leaving them in the dump, and now the cycle continues as another child will be born in the worst conditions on the Earth.
Steve asked me to pray for the next house that we delivered food to. The only words I could say was “I can’t” as I cried and hid my tears behind sunglasses. I didn’t want to cry, but I couldn’t help it.
As we integrate ourselves back into society, its easy to forget these things, but God gives me simple things like sunglasses to remind me why we do the work we do on mission trips.
July 2nd, 2007 at 5:59 pm
hi, i came accross your site after searching for photos from bluefields nicaragua on flickr.com. i was searching for photos because i am going on a missions trip to bluefields in a few weeks. i attend word tabernacle church in rocky mount, north carolina and we are helping a church in bluefields erect a cinderblock wall around a school there.
i am so excited and so ready. i am a photographer and i am praying that i will be able to capture images of our trip in an awesome way.
do you have any advice or precautions about travelling to bluefields. i am praying that i will be the most memorable experience of my life.
michelle r.