Isacc

Today was just amazing!  I woke up and went to the villages where our organization works.  I had some meetings with one association and 90% of the families in that association are successfuly saving their money which will eventually be matched to help them start a small business.   

I spent most of the afternoon in meetings with the banks so that I can start some small businesses here and continue to invest in Mozambique even after I leave.  After a few hours of meetings I had an hour to myself before my meeting at four.  I was just sitting on the bench in the middle of the city talking on the phone and this young man came and sat down next to me with a big smile on his face.  After I got off the phone he said "sorry to interrupt but you don't to know of any jobs or any places hiring do you?"  I was happy that he actually asked for work since most people just ask for money but I told him I didn't know of anything.  I made another phone call and he just sat there for a little bit and right as he was about to get up and leave I asked myself what Jesus would do in the situation so I figured I should probably talk to him a little bit.  As we got talking I realized how awesome of a kid he was and he was just so positive about life and everything and I told him about America and my family and girl.  I asked him about his family and he said everyone in his family had died.  I didn't really believe him at first because sometimes people tell you things like that because they want you to feel bad for them but the more I talked to him I realized that he may be telling the truth.  I ended really liking the kid and I connected with him well so I asked for his number so that I could call him if I ever heard of any work.  He told me that he had never owned a phone before and didn't have one.  I had a little time on my hands so I figured I would have him show me his house.  It took about 20 minutes to get to his "house".  It was in the ghetto!  I have attached the pictures of Isacc and his humble little shack. I went in and I couldn't sit in his one chair because I was too fat so I would have broke it so I just sat on his "bed"  which was just a mat on the dirt floor.  We talked for about an hour in his house and I found out that all of his family really was dead.  His only brother died when he was ten and his parents died when he was twelve.  He wanted to live with his uncle but his uncle wouldn't let him because he couldn't provide for another kid.  So Isacc has been living on his own since he was twelve years old and he is seventeen now.  He kept going to school but had to stop once the school started requiring ten dollars a month to continue on with his education which he couldn't afford.  However he is super intelligent and can read really well.  He has to pay $10 a month in rent(which is way more than he should have to for that shack) which he earns normally by going and helping the crews at sea for several days at a time just to earn a dollar or two.  He wasn't telling me this just to make me feel bad for him but it is just his reality!  He is probably one of the most positive/happiest people I have ever met in my life and he has been through more than almost anyone I know.  He said that normally he is very happy and positive but this morning he had woke up feeling kind of down because he had been a few days without food and work.  He said he asked God if he even loved him anymore and was just feeling very down.  Then he left and spent most of the day trying to find work and didn't find anything but then he saw me and figured he would give it one last shot.  I didn't give him the time of day at first but God knew Isaccs needs and so he gave me a little slap in the face to make me start talking to him.  He said "Felipe, you were an answer to my prayers today.  I woke up wondering if God even loved me anymore and was losing hope for my future but then you came along.  Just the fact that someone who is as busy as you and has so many better things to do than come spend a couple hours with me, someone you don't even know, was a sign from God that he still does know me and loves me."  It was one of the coolest experiences of my life to get a real look into poverty at its most extreme state.  However Isacc has a better attitude and more hope than almost anyone that I know.  Normally I don't give anyone money but right before I left I gave him a little money for dinner that night because he had been without food for a few days and had no way of getting money or food and also a few bucks to help him start a very small business on the side that will keep him from starving to death as he works through this difficult time.  It was amazing, in just a few hours we created a friendship that I could see lasting a long time.  Anyways sorry for the novel!  I hope you all have an amazing day.  

-Josh