Small miracle

We are in the business of miracles

And we heard of a small one yesterday.

Mrs. Candy is very sick. She has drug-resistant TB. She lives in a tiny shack.

Among her many sorrows is her son Tarun. Tarun is a 10 year old who has grown up on the streets. Mrs. Candy has been begging or picking through garbage all of his growing up years. He is virtually uncontrollable. His hands never stop moving.

Last year we were able after a lot of prayer get him admitted at Jeevan Asha – a nearby preschool run by the Covenant Blessings Church. The first few months were especially rough. Tarun’s behaviour was so inconsistent that we had to make a choice. Should we withdraw him since he had been beating up other children? We asked our colleagues at Jeevan Asha for some time and prayed. A small but real change was seen – and Tarun has been blessed with a whole year of love from the caring teachers at Jeevan Asha.

At the same time his mother Mrs. Candy was driven out of her house – because the slum she was living in was demolished.

Over the summer holidays we saw him wandering around – shoeless and disheveled.

Mrs. Candy we have seen more often as she has faithfully come for her TB meds. The drugs do not seem to have had much effect till now. She is very weak and knows that death may be soon.

And so to yesterday.

Mrs Candy was sleeping in the morning – along with her older daughter. Suddenly she realized that her son Tarun was up. Mrs. Candy was tired and sick and so wasn’t sure what was happening, but it seemed that he was taking a bath, pouring the cold water over him. He then dressed himself and put oil on his head and combed his hair.

Surprised and still dazed Mrs. Candy asked Tarun what he was doing. I am going to my school he said and left.

Mrs. Candy fell back into her uneasy sleep. Waking later she found Tarun gone. In her confused state she remembered something about school – but she was not sure. Afraid that something may have happened to him, she told her daughter to go and look and see if she could find him.

The girl came back with the news that she had peeked into Jeevan Asha – and there was Tarun sitting quietly and staring intensely at the teacher.

In the midst of so much destruction we see small miracles take place. Knowing Tarun the thought of him taking these steps on his own is nothing short of divine intervention. Small miracles – but real.