The circumstances differ but the stories always have some things in common: 1) They arrest the attention of even the most cynical adults - who, even in spite of themselves, feel a glimmer of hope for the future. 2) The kid is the humble-type who never sought attention in the first place. And 3) The actions spring from a motivation which is others-centered and pure.
I'm beginning to think my oldest is one of those.
This is not to detract from any of the other three - who are each wonderful and faithful and self-giving in their own rights, but I have to share what "Dats" - at 11 years old - is teaching me these days.
(By the way - I call him "Dats" here because that was his first nickname. It's what his one year old sister called him when he was two. I've been trying to make it stick ever since.)
My new understanding of Dats hit home this week. For months he has talked about doing a talk about Haiti at school. He worked on a PowerPoint for it several weeks ago. To my shame, I never really asked him much about it. This past week the time finally came for him to present. (It seemed to be good timing since just a couple of weeks ago, Melissa and I had decided he should go with me to Haiti - but more about that later.)
I guess I thought his presentation was some long-term project or something - just another school assignment. It didn't even hit home Wednesday night at dinner when he announced that he had given his presentation at school.
"That's nice. How did it go?"
"OK."
Later that evening Dats asked if he could take some prayer cards to school on Thursday to pass out after his presentation. "I thought you spoke today."
"I only spoke to the first half of the 6th grade class today. Tomorrow I speak to the other half."
It STILL didn't hit me. I didn't give a thought to the fact that he goes to one of the biggest grade schools in the state - I think there are something like 120 or more students per grade level. He had voluntarily given a speech in front of 60 to 70 of his classmates that day and was preparing to do it again the next day with a new crowd!
The next morning Melissa called just after the start of school to say Dats had forgotten the prayer cards. Truthfully, I was a little irritated to have to make an extra run to school. It wasn't until I actually stepped into the school building that I felt a nudge - I believe from the Holy Spirit.
He seemed to be saying, "Hey, Knucklehead - wake up! Pay attention!"
My dimwitted first response was "Wow ... I almost missed a photo-op. I need to find out what time he is giving the speech so I can take some pictures for the blog or Facebook."
His teacher assured me that Dats wasn't speaking until 2:10. When I returned in the afternoon with my camera, I was still clueless about the significance of the moment.
When I walked into the room to witness Dats being introduced as their guest speaker for Social Studies, it started to sink in. He turned the projector on, brought up his slides and confidently jumped right in. He showed maps so the kids would know where Haiti was located. He talked about the poverty entrenched in Haiti and he showed a picture of a malnourished baby - Sammy, who is now being nursed to health by some missionary friends of ours. The picture came from their recent newsletter and it is shocking. At one year old, Sammy was only about 8 pounds. Dats explained how these missionaries, Bud and Jane, were helping with a local orphange and that we would be taking some supplies to them next week when he accompanied me to Haiti.
Well, his classmates asked some great questions after Dats finished his presentation. They were genuinely interested and very curious. One little guy's question: "Aren't you going to miss us when you move down there?" (I wanted to hug that kid.) A young lady asked: "Do you need any help with raising funds for your family?" (I restrained myself from yelling, "YES! Give me your name and phone number!")
When all was said and done, Dats had had about 40 minutes of class time and as school dismissed, one classmate gave him a five dollar bill "for Sammy" and another was talking to Dats' teacher about planning a big fundraiser for our family. His teacher told the class that she hopes we can Skype from Haiti during one of the school days we are there. The next day Dats and another student were given time to type up a "newsletter" to send home with all the 6th graders about voluntarily collecting some baby food and formula and soap and sheets for Sammy and the kids at the orphanage. They are even going to try to raise some cash donations to help pay for the extra luggage!
And to think I almost missed witnessing the whole thing because I wasn't paying attention to what God was orchestrating right under my nose!
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| Dats shows the class where Haiti is located in relation to Florida. |
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| All in a day's work - Dats had to rush off after his presentation in order to man his post for safety patrol. "Keep to the right, please." |
"Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for
the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity." - I Timothy 4:12
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