As I walk through the trash filled paths of one of the many
slums in Kampala, Uganda there are many things I am trying to process. First is
the smell, straight sewage. Excuse my honesty but it smells like straight shit,
and it is heart breaking. I see trash, everywhere, and then I see people
staring and pointing. This time, however, it is not me the people of the slum
are pointing and staring at, which is a first. As they point I can hear them
chatting of the subject that their fingers have drawn them too. You see, the
girl I walk with, Esther, was just voted, “Hero of the Month” by the biggest
news paper in Uganda, Sunday Vision. This mint a front page photo and story, so
here is why Esther is more than just a “hero for a month.”
I say
her story but what story of a child would start without beginning with her
parents. Rachel is the proud mother of Esther. Rachel lost her first child
after becoming pregnant due to a rape. Rachel is blind and very fragile. After
losing her first child she became pregnant a second time by another man,
Esther’s father. He, however, was HIV+ and has transferred the disease to Rachel.
He later left Rachel and Esther and was rarely around. He has now passed. Rachel
now HIV+, gave birth to Esther who currently does not show she has the disease,
but this maybe because at 10 years old she is too young for the disease to
show. I obviously hope and pray that she does not have the disease. More trouble came when Rachel’s father past
away. Owning two plots of land Rachel’s father left the land to Rachel and her
siblings. Rachel’s sibling, however, tried to run Esther and Rachel out.
Leaving them homeless, Rachel got the idea to go to IJM (International Justice
Mission) and try and win back from her own brother and sister her share of the
home. She was successful, but it was also costly. With her siblings upset they
had to give her a place to stay, they abandoned Rachel and Esther for dead in
2007. Seriously though, Rachel, a blind HIV+ mother, who cannot work, and her 5
year old daughter, Esther. IJM referenced the family to, Empower a Child who
helped get Esther a sponsor so she could attend school and possibly help the
family in any way. Esther has cared for her mother by herself since then. Now
10, Esther wakes up every morning and makes tea and breakfast for her mother.
She then runs to school and returns home after school is out and continues to
care for her mother.
By God’s grace and Esther’s determination,
Esther has been able to care for her mother and herself for the past five
years. They live in a tiny 10’x10’ home (it is most definitely a small room but
they call it home) with a small old coffee table, a shelf, a bench, a chair,
and a small bed that they share. Esther cooks, cleans, does laundry, fetches
water and gets food (when they have money for it). She also attends school and
helps care for her ailing mother in any other way she may need: walking her to the bathroom, taking her to
get medication, or staying home from school on days when Rachel is not feeling
well. On all of this their home, which is in a slum, is not good for them. It
is old and worn. The walls do not hold water back anymore so when it rains, it
floods. Esther then has to bucket as much water out as she can. What she can’t
she waits for it to dry. This produces a large amount of mosquitoes.
Esther’s excitement to see me when
I got to her house was enormous. She began jumping up and down shouting, “Tyla,
Tyla, Tyla!” She said it was only the second time a muzungu (white person) had
been to her house. She told me how she does not like school, how her “friends”
make fun of her and how they stole her shoes this week when she had to remove
them for PE, icing on the cake right?
The most powerful part of this
story though is the contagious smile of Esther. It never seems to leave her
face, always grinning from ear to ear. When I first met Esther I never knew her
story. Her high amount of energy is probably what drew us together the first
time, as I chased her, spun her, through her, and laughed with her. That day I
thought Rachel was her sister, her escort to the sponsorship meeting. I had no
idea it was her mother. It was not until Esther and Rachel came to the house
for a second sponsorship meeting that I got the story after we played for a
long while and had bible study. Going to the home was only the third time I had
got to see them and tomorrow will be my last. We don’t know how much longer Rachel’s
life will last, but when she passes, Esther will be able to go to boarding
school which will produce a safer and healthier living condition for her. She
has already asked to go to boarding school, but knows she cannot because of the
care she must provide for her mother. She is a very strong and smart girl. She
tells me she wants to be a lawyer.
In one photo you will see Esther, Rachel,
and I. You will also see a photo of me with Esther and the neighborhood kids. I
think most of them were around because the muzungu was there more so than to
see Esther.
I was almost in tears as I left their place yesterday. It took
everything I had to hold them in. It was extremely hard for me to say goodbye.
Knowing that I would be on the other side of the world next week with not much
I could do for them. Afterwards, however, I realized how much I could do for
them, through prayer. As it is one of the most powerful things we can utilize
in this life. If you would like to help Esther and her mother in anyway please
let me know. Literally anything would help them. If not then please join me in
praying for them.
Be Blessed
Sweet Lou
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