"A child either weeps or smiles — with
his whole being."
Saint John of San Francisco
The
boarding home for children is located near St. Elisabeth Convent. The children
who reside there are unable to take care of themselves and many cannot even
move around without the help of others. The sisters from the Convent call them
“Little Martyrs”. Their diagnoses vary from Down’s Syndrome and patrimonial
traumas to inborn physical defects and accompanying diseases of internal
organs. Approximately two hundred children, many of whom are orphans, permanently
stay at this hospital.
In as
much as the children need our help we in turn need them. People who come here
for the first time ask why God has punished them and why the children have to
suffer so much. Others cannot bear such suffering at all. Nevertheless, there
are those who are able to surpass such emotions and then have a wonderful
chance to feel something bright and pure because every child at the boarding
home is a reflection of God’s love.
An
obedience at the boarding home entails thinking not just about oneself. Here a
person needs to forget selfish endeavors and begin to care for others, which is
not always easy to do. The sisters do not ask, “Why the children are
suffering?” but instead ask, “Lord, how can I help Your children?” They have
their own difficulties and temptations and yet each day they return to the
boarding home to serve God through the service of the sick…
CONVERSATION