Ana is the most grateful person I know. She has very little, yet she is grateful for everything. Her faith is so deep that she even manages to be grateful for things yet to come!
Today she returned to the breakfast program where I used to serve, and where I met her. She has been the cook there for four years, feeding between 40-70 kids each day. She said the kids were really happy to see her. She wasn't able to serve in November or December because she had cancerous cells removed and had to take two months off per doctor's orders.
During that time, with help from her mother and her kids, she still made the snacks for Impacto Juvenil - the organization where I serve. She needs that income. Impacto Juvenil pays her a lump sum. Out of that money she has to make 75 snacks per week. In the end she only makes 5 Lempiras per snack - that comes out to $16.30 in weekly earnings to feed her family.
After the surgery for cancer the doctor said that she really needs another surgery. Her body was badly torn apart in childbirth but at the time the doctors didn't offer any follow up care. Ana said she knows she has had problems since her first child was born over 17 years ago.
The doctor who treated the cancer is from a better hospital. Soon she will get her reconstructive surgery.
While she was getting pre-surgery exams done this week she saw people around her who seemed really depressed. She gave them encouragement (like she did me when I was on bedrest) and told them, "Cheer up! I never thought I would own two packages of diapers for my daughter. But you know what! I did!!"
I've explained in this blog about how people here tend to buy what they need right now. Ana used to buy diapers for Isabela one by one from a corner store. Isa was severely allergic to cloth diapers. She had horrible red welts. Ana tried her best to keep Isa in disposable diapers. But she had never purchased a whole package of diapers before in her life. She never even dreamed of buying a package of diapers. It was all she could do to buy them one at a time.
One day, years ago, I was standing in the grocery store looking at diapers. I asked myself why in the world I was standing there in front of the diapers. I felt like I was supposed to buy some. At that time the only baby I knew in diapers was Isabela. Her mother had changed her in front of me and I had notices how red and raw she was. It realized God put me there to buy diapers for Isa.
Ana's family often goes hungry, so I asked God if He was sure I should buy diapers. Wouldn't food make more sense? It seemed odd! But God was telling me I was only supposed to worry about the diapers. So that's what I did.
To this day Ana is grateful for those diapers. She is telling strangers in the public hospital about it to encourage them to have faith. She's not talking about the days she didn't have food or clothes for her children. She is thankful for the days that she did!
In the same conversation Ana also shared her gratitude for the fact that her son will graduate this year and should be all set to study to be a pilot after graduation. She LOVES the beauty classes she receives through Impacto Juvenil. There is a special joy in her voice as she talks about what she has already learned and what she is looking forward to learning in 2017. She is already trained in manicures and pedicures. They will learn cuts, styling and makeup in 2017.
Her only concern is that her flat iron broke. Only one side heats up. She doesn't know how she will be a hair stylist in Honduras (where everyone wants "smooth" hair) without a straightening iron. She sent her straightening iron to be fixed, but the guy couldn't fix it. A new one costs two weeks salary.
The thing I am most grateful for is new front steps for Ana's house! Ana's house sits on the side of a mountain. Her front steps have been a hazard since I met her. They are tall and teetery. Twice that I am aware of (probably more), Isabela fell out of the house and landed on the ground because of those steps. Once she got a concussion. Ana has been praying and asking for help to buy cement for new steps for over six years. This year she will finally get her new steps! My coworker who is the leader of Impacto Juvenil in Los Pinos, told Ana that the steps will be the first community project of 2017. That makes me so happy!
Can you imagine sending your curling iron to be fixed? Can you imagine diapers being so far out of reach that you'd never dream of buying a whole package? Can you imagine waiting over six years and watching your kids get hurt, but not being able to build safe steps for the entry to your home? If you can't imagine these things, you're not alone. I can't either.
When I told Ana I thought six years was a long time to wait for those steps, Ana replied, "God's time is not like our time. We think in minutes or hours, days, weeks or even a year. But sometimes God's time is longer. We just have to be patient." ♥ I love my faithful friend!
I am grateful that God gave me a friend who is so appreciative, who always sees the positive in things and never dwells on the negative. Ana has so much she could rightfully complain about. Her life is tough. Yet, through it all her attitude of gratitude is an inspiration.
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