Allison’s Dream
Her name is Allison. I spotted her the day we arrived, sitting on the craggy rocks with her sisters. Her face the reflection of innocence. Untarnished by the hardships she doesn’t realize she is living.
The house they live in is small. Surrounded by a fence and gate that locks to protect the mother, grandmother, aunt and small children who live there against the gangs that rule the area.
You can see Allison’s mother doing the laundry under the porch at the front entrance of the house. This is also the wash area where Allison is bathed.
Life for them seems hard to us, but they know nothing more. They don’t know the privilege of turning on a faucet and have water, cool and refreshing come pouring forth.
For them, water is delivered once a week from a water truck, captured and saved in containers with lids, some for cooking and drinking, and some for washing and cleaning.
Allison and her sisters wear clothes that are cleaned by her mother, washing them on a scrub board on the porch with her hands, rinsing them, squeezing all the water out, then spreading them on the fence, on the bushes and clothes line to dry in the hot sun.
They are blessed. Really. Many of the children in the village wore the same clothes for three or four days. This is what they are used to. They would not know what to do with a real bathtub or kitchen sink. To have a bed on an actual bed frame would be a sight to them. Most of their beds would be cots, or mattresses positioned on concrete blocks. And all the siblings would share the space.
Tell your kids that next time they complain about sharing a room. Many of these children share the same room with all their siblings and grandparents or parents, or whoever else may be living with them.
The first time I really saw Allison, really had a good long look into her bright brown eyes, she was looking just as she is in the picture above. Clean dress, fresh from her bath, feather in hand.
I almost gasped aloud when I saw the feather in her hand. If you have read the book by Bruce Wilkinson, The Dream Giver, then you know why. I almost felt as if The Holy Spirit whispered in my ear, “She has her dream too”.
“What would her dream be?” I wondered to myself. Will she have a life so encumbered by things that she misses the Voice of God–asking her to take up her dream and go after it? Probably not. It won’t be “things” that hinder her obedience–thereby achieving her dream, but perhaps it could be willingness to obey.
Do you have a dream? Is there too many things in your life hindering the Voice of the One who beckons you to greener pasture? To still waters? Are you willing to loosen your grasp of what you have in order that Christ Jesus might choose the best for you?
I believe that is where my heart has been for this entire year. Maybe even stretching back to the last months of 2009. “Help me Father, loosen my grip on this life, so that I can be useful to You in Your kingdom. Help me catch the vision that You have for me–and walk in faith–no matter what it may look like now, help me see beyond the circumstances into the reality of what You desire for my life.” That has almost been my constant prayer for this year. I pray that I continue to be led by the Holy Spirit in all things.
Going where He leads, doing what He desires will bring complete and fullness of joy to your life and mine! Don’t be afraid of the dream! Hang on and fly with the Spirit!
By the way, Allison doesn’t have a sponsor yet, if you are interested in helping a child like Allison, you can visit Mission of Mercy for more information.
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I praise God for you sis, and all of your efforts to spread His love, and compassion. Be blessed, as you bless.
Thank you for sharing your dream that became a reality…
Hanging on and flying!!
She is precious Angie. It is glorious to see the joy in your heart as you follow the dream. Thank you for sharing it Angie.
I have seen the innocence in the eyes and hearts of many children in Honduras. Wish all the kids here could get to that same innocence. Please pray for my neighbor, her 13 year old set their house on fire with his mother and 2 little brothers in there while they slept. Luckily God activated their smoke detector and they got out safely. But the house is a total loss.
You are right, Angie. We often don’t know how truly blessed we are, having running water, a bed, stove, washing machine etc. Thank you for the reminder that there are people, especially children that are less fortunate.
Thank you for sharing Allison with us and for reminding us how very blessed we are.