Blocks

Part I: The Beginning

Meet Caroline. Christian. Wife. Mother of 4 young boys. Caroline regularly gathered things amidst her growing brood to give away to the less fortunate, to give back in some little way. Some clothes, toys, and a set of brightly-colored building blocks. The blocks were in perfect condition. But, since her boys didn’t play with them that much, she thought she’d just give them away as well. While the boys were distracted, she quickly stowed them away in the back of her van.

That next week, she found herself volunteering as a Vacation Bible School teacher at our church. Several events centered around the church’s upcoming family mission trip to Honduras. To an orphanage. Those blocks popped into Caroline’s mind.

As the boys chatted behind her in the van on the way home, they talked about their day, their classes, Honduras and the orphans. Caroline’s mind, once again, drifted back to those blocks.

The next day at Vacation Bible School, children were bringing things cited on a list to donate to the orphanage: toothpaste, light bulbs, clothes, school supplies. Nobody brought blocks. They weren’t even on the list. Caroline bumped into Allyson, our children’s minister. “Hey, Allyson. I’ve been thinking about those orphans; I have this set of blocks…” Allyson told her to bring them on. They could be added to all the other gifts.

Later, during a quick break, Caroline zipped to the van and brought those blocks, that pile of brightly-colored toys to the church. To God, to give. Just like He had whispered to her.

The only problem: it was such a busy day. Caroline didn’t see Allyson anywhere. She finally put the blocks on the registration table, hoped her message would be passed along, sighed and hurried to catch up with her Vacation Bible School kids.

Part II: The Packing Party

VBS had been great for the orphanage.  The children and volunteers – the church – had given so much: their supplies (clothes, Bibles, toiletries, dresses…); their money (through donations and fundraisers): and their hearts. To the packers, it looked like a mountain!

The team members had all been commissioned in both worship services that morning. They had dedicated themselves to this mission. They had also committed to bring items as well – tissues boxes, hair conditioner, diapers, Spanish books, pajamas… Plus, each of us had a week’s worth of clothing and shoes as well as bed linens and towels. (Much, we would use and then leave behind.) The men even had to pack mosquito nets and air mattresses - not knowing where they would bunk down that first night. Corporately, we had recreation items – soccer balls and basketballs for the children; puppets; crafts; and even brand-new, battery-powered saws and tools. Lots of stuff. Heavy stuff. Where would it all go?

Instead of Jesus’ miracle of multiplying fishes and loaves, we prayed for one of division – dividing all those items into each team member’s suitcases. We carefully watched the fifty-pound weight limit on each bag. Each pound over meant more money to the airlines - and less to the orphans.

Unbelievably, the mountain of supplies became a hill and finally dwindled to a few leftover items. That pile of blocks sat to the side, appearing to take up lots of space. Thank God, they were light though. As all the other items disappeared into bags, the teenagers were given the blocks and told to stack them in thin rows.

A long, dark green, army duffle bag held 50 pairs of pajamas; but, miraculously, the soft fabrics just shifted as those tall lengths of blocks vanished within. The pajamas seemed to nestle into the crooks and crannies of those blocks. Forty-something pounds. The team members sighed. Packing was done.

Part III: Little Christian

Ah, little Christian. He stole my heart, all our hearts. I first met him at our arrival. Some of the children were leaning against the fence, watching us as the bus drove up. This group was the biggest gathering of gringos they had even seen at one time – the forty of us. Most volunteers came in small groups, mainly teenagers on summer mission trips. Now, though, they had men – lots of them, to look up to and climb on. And women – to hug and hold. Teenagers, too… & children who were just the right size.

There was someone for each one of those thirty-eight orphans - and a couple left over! The children had already seen our luggage, that mountain of stuff, arrive earlier on a flat-bed truck. It sat waiting for our arrival. It had been a l-o-n-g day. Most of us had been awake since around 1:00 a.m.; but, we still had much to do on this first day in Honduras.

I remember Christian. He came right up to me and squatted down beside my carry-on bag. He could have fit perfectly inside it – had it not been jam-packed. He grinned up at me – and, before I knew it, he reached out, grabbed the silver handle, and rolled it along behind him – taking away all my belongings and my heart!

We all remember watching Christian watch us – from behind his fence and gate. While all the big kids were in school, he and Jeffrey stayed back at the house with the tias – resting and waiting for the schoolchildren to be dismissed for the day. The tias were so busy – hand-laundering children’s clothes, cleaning their homes, caring for Jeffrey. So, Christian spent time waiting… and watching.

One early afternoon found us with a few minutes to spare. Zach’s eyes met Christian’s through the fence. He went to the gate, called to the tia, and, through his halting blend of Spanish and English, asked if Christian could come out and play.

Zach, Tiff and Christian played on the swings and chatted. Jennifer Burley’s eyes lit up. She had seen those blocks earlier when she helped unpack and organize all the supplies in the Mission House. She had been waiting for this opportunity – Those blocks were meant for Christian!

As Jennifer and I retrieved the blocks and placed them on the porch away from schoolchildren’s wandering eyes, we whispered excitedly, “Has Christian ever even seen blocks before? Had any of the children ever held a single block in their hands? There were so many blocks in the bag. What would Christian do?”

Well, the independent Christian who drug heavy luggage and who insisted on clipping the safety chain on the swing all by himself – that Christian. His eyes just lit up when Zach and Tiff said, “Look, Christian! Look! Blocks!”  He could not get out of that locked swing fast enough.

His bright eyes widened and a huge smile crossed his face. He zipped over and sat down right in the midst of them. He began quietly taking the blocks, piece by piece, out of that huge bag. Jennifer used her Spanish knowledge to support his blossoming early childhood education – “rojo, anaranjado, armarillo”(colors) and “uno, dos, tres, cuatro, cinco, seis”(numbers).

Christian consistently picked up a block, noticed its size and number of notches, and then stacked all the pieces with one notch together. The two-notches together. The fours. The sixes. He was very deliberate and thoughtful in his thinking.

There was a piece with wheels. Thinking that might add to his learning and fun right then, we oohed. “Oooo… Look, Christian. Wheels!” He looked at it carefully as we handed it to him, paused and then put it right back into the bag. “Maybe later,” we giggled. As he quietly continued working, a small crowd of gringos circled around, enjoying this magical moment.

Just as he was finishing taking all the non-wheeled pieces out of the bag, one of the towers wobbled when he shoulder lightly touched it. His eyebrow lifted as he noticed its movement. A glint came into that eye. And then, he abruptly pushed it over and fell right into the pile. We all squealed.

There are not many things as precious as watching a little one discover something marvelous for the first time ever. What amazing gifts – that gift of witnessing such a moment and that gift of those blocks.

Epilogue: Remember Caroline?

She was startled by the stories that began making their way back to her. You know, she was a wife, a mother of four boys. Busy, in Columbia, South Carolina.

But, she was also a mighty team member serving on the mission fields in Honduras that day.

Some of Caroline’s ending thoughts:

“I never realized how such a small thing could not only bring so much joy to another child, but how much joy it would bring to me and my family… What a blessing to me! It’s not often I get to see the joy brought to someone by such a small gift that the Lord led me to give specifically for the Honduras orphanage! It makes me realize that small voice inside me IS the Holy Spirit, leading and guiding me for His specific purpose. I am blessed! “

Thanks, Caroline, for sharing your story with me and then allowing me to  write it in my own way! If any inaccuracies exist, I take responsibility. -JMB                                      (Photos Courtesy of Amanda Ayers, Maria Owens, Emily Neal and Paula Patterson)