The journey of a 15 year old girl
When I was 15, I lived in a small town in Indiana. I had a small circle of friends. I babysat on weekends. I went to basketball games and football games or slumber parties at my friends' houses. I was in 10th grade. I didn't know what I wanted to be when I grew up, but I knew I'd figure it out eventually. I wasn't in a hurry. Being a kid was pretty good, actually. I had no illusions that growing up meant more freedom. I was free... to be myself... in a loving family... in a safe home... God would grow me up in time. I knew that even then.
Last week a 15 year old girl came knocking on my gate. She turned out to be the niece of one of our night watchmen who happened to be off work for a few days. She needed to see him. He didn't answer his phone. She didn't know where he lived. She met him here before... she wasn't from Tete, but another part of the province. Her time in Tete last month was short and she worked at a neighbor's house looking after an elderly lady... sleeping on the porch to deter thieves or something. She wasn't really free to go to her uncle's house while she was working - and she was probably working the whole month. Maybe he helped her get a job there, I don't know. Facts gleaned from broken Portuguese and Sena and Nyungwe weren't all that complete. But... she was alone in this town at 15 years old... at my gate.
It turned out that she'd just arrived that same morning on a train from Mutarara. Trains in Mozambique are somewhat of a novelty. Cheap, direct transportation just opened up in the past year. Many people are trying the train. MANY people. Like 200 crammed in one car for many hours with only short stops. People now have a chance to come to the city to work. Families send them... young and not so young... hoping for a chance to make some money to send home. Back home she lives with her grandmother and a sister. So after a month or so of work, she headed home with her paycheck on that train to Mutarara to hand over the money. Then back to Tete... for more work and to collect a debt from that uncle who needed cash for a cell phone that he didn't answer when we needed to call him.
He couldn't answer the cell phone because he was at the machamba- the family garden plot where he was preparing the fields on his 3 days off. In the machamba there isn't really electricity, so people turn off phones to save the charge. Can't blame him for that. Just really bad timing for his 15 year old niece at my gate that morning. When I told her to wait here until we got in touch with him, she told me about her terrible toothache. Probably abscessed and swollen. She wanted her money to get it pulled. I gladly gave her the change she needed for the doctor visit. They never pull the tooth the same day anyway. She'd get a paper telling her to come back tomorrow. If she were lucky, she'd get pain reliever for today. She left. I prayed.
She came back. With antibiotics and two kinds of pain reliever. Lucky girl! No paper sending her to get her tooth pulled. At 15, I didn't really want her to have to pull it, but a bad tooth can be really nasty. Fixing a tooth can be really a mess here too. I gave her some food so she could take her meds and she sat in our shade under the mango tree and waited. She must have been exhausted. I still hadn't gotten in touch with Uncle yet.
Later in the afternoon, my cleaning lady Artinha helped her get her things together to take a bath. I'm pretty sure I'd want a bath after that trip she had last night. Then we fixed her up with a little more food that she could eat with a sore tooth. Artinha went home. I brought out the Nyungwe Bible story books. Sena is her langauge, but I don't have Sena books lying around. Nyungwe is close. We read Noah together. She's been through 5th grade, but said she can't write. In 5th you have to pass a test to move to the next level. I guess she didn't make it. She smiled a little bit. I smiled a lot. I almost always smile too much.
By nightfall, our network of acquaintances helped to sort out her situation. She was taken to her uncle's house. Her uncle was contacted in the fields, and he explained the situation a little better. I was glad she had people to take care of her who understood her. I prayed some more that she'd be safe. Feel safe. Not have to be a tough grown-up 15 year old girl. At least for a day or so, maybe she'd be a guest and recover from her toothache. I prayed that Jesus would call her and help her feel loved.
"The lady helped me a lot..." she told our friend.
"God helped you... when he let you find me at home today." I said.
I smiled. That's what I do. Then I prayed again.
Last week a 15 year old girl came knocking on my gate. She turned out to be the niece of one of our night watchmen who happened to be off work for a few days. She needed to see him. He didn't answer his phone. She didn't know where he lived. She met him here before... she wasn't from Tete, but another part of the province. Her time in Tete last month was short and she worked at a neighbor's house looking after an elderly lady... sleeping on the porch to deter thieves or something. She wasn't really free to go to her uncle's house while she was working - and she was probably working the whole month. Maybe he helped her get a job there, I don't know. Facts gleaned from broken Portuguese and Sena and Nyungwe weren't all that complete. But... she was alone in this town at 15 years old... at my gate.
It turned out that she'd just arrived that same morning on a train from Mutarara. Trains in Mozambique are somewhat of a novelty. Cheap, direct transportation just opened up in the past year. Many people are trying the train. MANY people. Like 200 crammed in one car for many hours with only short stops. People now have a chance to come to the city to work. Families send them... young and not so young... hoping for a chance to make some money to send home. Back home she lives with her grandmother and a sister. So after a month or so of work, she headed home with her paycheck on that train to Mutarara to hand over the money. Then back to Tete... for more work and to collect a debt from that uncle who needed cash for a cell phone that he didn't answer when we needed to call him.
He couldn't answer the cell phone because he was at the machamba- the family garden plot where he was preparing the fields on his 3 days off. In the machamba there isn't really electricity, so people turn off phones to save the charge. Can't blame him for that. Just really bad timing for his 15 year old niece at my gate that morning. When I told her to wait here until we got in touch with him, she told me about her terrible toothache. Probably abscessed and swollen. She wanted her money to get it pulled. I gladly gave her the change she needed for the doctor visit. They never pull the tooth the same day anyway. She'd get a paper telling her to come back tomorrow. If she were lucky, she'd get pain reliever for today. She left. I prayed.
She came back. With antibiotics and two kinds of pain reliever. Lucky girl! No paper sending her to get her tooth pulled. At 15, I didn't really want her to have to pull it, but a bad tooth can be really nasty. Fixing a tooth can be really a mess here too. I gave her some food so she could take her meds and she sat in our shade under the mango tree and waited. She must have been exhausted. I still hadn't gotten in touch with Uncle yet.
Later in the afternoon, my cleaning lady Artinha helped her get her things together to take a bath. I'm pretty sure I'd want a bath after that trip she had last night. Then we fixed her up with a little more food that she could eat with a sore tooth. Artinha went home. I brought out the Nyungwe Bible story books. Sena is her langauge, but I don't have Sena books lying around. Nyungwe is close. We read Noah together. She's been through 5th grade, but said she can't write. In 5th you have to pass a test to move to the next level. I guess she didn't make it. She smiled a little bit. I smiled a lot. I almost always smile too much.
By nightfall, our network of acquaintances helped to sort out her situation. She was taken to her uncle's house. Her uncle was contacted in the fields, and he explained the situation a little better. I was glad she had people to take care of her who understood her. I prayed some more that she'd be safe. Feel safe. Not have to be a tough grown-up 15 year old girl. At least for a day or so, maybe she'd be a guest and recover from her toothache. I prayed that Jesus would call her and help her feel loved.
"The lady helped me a lot..." she told our friend.
"God helped you... when he let you find me at home today." I said.
I smiled. That's what I do. Then I prayed again.
Brilliant writing and heart my friend!
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