Last night, we had a chance to give away that food we've been stashing in our car. K and I went to McDonalds. We wanted a night out, and a familiar American restaurant sounded good! (You probably think we go there all the time. Seriously, probably 2 out of the 5 total times we've been there have been written about in this blog!) :) We arrived at McDonalds, ate our Big Macs, and started back to the car. Suddenly, K stopped..."A fudge sundae sounds really good right now...wanna split one?" :) Now you know I'd never refuse ice cream; so we made our way back inside. As we approached the door, a little boy around the age of 6, barefoot and donned in ragged clothing opened the door for us. Orphans commonly hang around restaurants, begging for food. K stopped, bent down to his level, met his eyes and asked, "You're hungry, aren't you?" He nodded. "Come inside with us." I couldn't help but notice the entire restaurant stare at us, as we made our way back inside. I'm sure we looked odd to them. A couple of white people, inviting a barefoot orphan inside the restaurant with them. As we stood in line to order food, I remembered the food we had bought specifically for this purpose, which was still in our car. I quietly whispered to the boy that I was going to get more food and would be right back.
As I made my way back to the restaurant, there was a small crowd gathering. Where that one little boy stood before, there were now 4 children. I squatted on the ground with them, opened the bag, and began passing out food. Smiles lit up their faces as they tore into the packages and shared with one another. I began to ask questions. Where are your parents? Often times parents will send their kids out to beg for money during the day while they sit at home. This infuriates me. Two of the boys stared up at me with their big brown eyes and said, "Tidak ada orang tua" (there are no parents). "Tidak ada Mama" (we have no Mama). I felt my heart break into a million pieces. If that wasn't bad enough, I had to ask, "Where do you live?" "There," they pointed. "Kardus." Kardus. The word hit me like a ton of bricks. They live in a cardboard shack. I wanted to gather them in my arms and take them home with me that instant. NO child should have to sleep in a cardboard box. I noticed that the child who was barefoot had black toenails. I mentally scolded myself for changing from my flip-flops to high heels before we left. Had I worn the flip-flops, I would have taken them off my feet. I doubted though that the six year old boy could (or would want to) walk in heels.
As we made our way home, our hearts broke. We talked about how we would always open our home to orphans...but what are the laws regarding that here? What are the ramifications to think through? How can we be Jesus to them where they're at, if it's illegal to bring them into our home? Should we volunteer at the local orphanages? Pray for wisdom in how to think/feel/and act regarding the heartbreaking reality of these children's lives here.
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