Hello! I’m Rebeca, a volunteer with Hope for the Future and, with a few poor words, I will try to open my heart and describe to you what Africa means.
In the middle of this dark continent, children taught me that happiness is born from simple things…
Looking into their eyes, I discovered an incredible richness – genuine joy that has nothing to do with material things! So much joy in so much sadness… How can this be?
A lot of people asked me if I wasn’t afraid to go to Africa… And yes, the truth is I was afraid to go… I was afraid that I wouldn’t like it too much… that Africa would not mean something more to me… but it does.
I tried at home to imagine everything here in Africa.. and I couldn’t! Arriving here, I witnessed a painful reality.
These children don’t know how to react to love. You look at them with love, you touch them, you say “NDIMAKUKONDANI – I love you” and they understand what it means but they don’t know how to react… they are not used to love.
The sincere joy that they experience so intensely we don’t experience at all because we don’t know how to enjoy small things. They haven’t eaten for days and yet when they come to praise God, they do it with all their energy, with all their strength! And when you see that, it’s OVERWHELMING!
I was amazed to see how they found ways to care for each other, share their limited resources and support each other in a deeply selfless way.
This is possible because the Gospel gives them hope. It doesn’t help them here on earth, it doesn’t fill their stomachs, but it fills their hearts with the peace of God. They need nothing but God’s love to fill their hearts!
So this experience in Africa opened my eyes to the essence of life!
I lived in a bubble where everything seemed fine, and now for me, the bubble is burst… I have seen the harsh reality, very harsh, so harsh that my words are too few to explain what is here.
God doesn’t take into account the times of ignorance… Now that I know what’s going on here, now that I understand and I’m here, the times of ignorance are over, now the times of knowledge are coming. What do I do now? What do you do now when I tell you what’s happening here?
Today, I am their voice, the voice of the children and, because I am exposed to reality, I can only ask you to open your hearts for Africa!
“Lord, You have overwhelmed me with so much love when I truly knew You and now it’s my turn to share it! Help me to spread love out of Your love to these little hearts that are so precious to You! And yet, may I not stop at this, but spread Your wonders and You in all Your splendor!“
Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute.
Prov. 31:8