mean?”
“Because you’re bad. You think you can’t go because you’re bad.” As soon as I said it and saw the way he winced, I knew I was right.
When he shrugged and didn’t respond, I wondered if I’d gone too far. I sighed loudly.
He faced me again, his eyes narrow.
“I don’t know as much as David does about God and church,” I said, “but I’m pretty sure he would agree with me. For one thing, you are not bad at all, but also, even if you were, God especially wants bad people to come to him.”
He angled his head, his expression brightening. “To be made good?”
“No. To be loved.”
His eyes widened and he stared at me. For a moment I thought he would cry. Then his expression closed down again, and he turned away to resume staring out the window.
Sensing that the conversation was over, I started the car and drove the rest of the way to Camp Bano. When we arrived, I took him straight to the kids’ dorms where Julia was waiting. She introduced him to Marly, a young woman in her early twenties who was staying with them. She took Leon to his dorm to settle him in.
After they left, Julia turned to me, her eyes kind, and I thought again what a soothing air she had about her. “Well done, Penny. You made all the difference. Having someone who knows the law is a Godsend. How was he in the car?”
“He’s hurt,” I said simply. “Distrustful. He doesn’t want to go to church, but I think that’s more about how he feels about himself than anything.”
Julia nodded sadly. “Yes, sometimes it’s the biggest battle for these kids. Overcoming things they’ve been told about themselves is really hard.”
“He’s a clever kid,” I said. “Tough, but there’s a sensitivity to him too. He could go far.”
Smiling, Julia searched my eyes. Although her gaze was gentle, she had a way of seeming to look straight into my soul that was unnerving. “You really care,” she said.
“I work with a lot of kids,” I admitted, “but not usually this young. And the things they face here...” I shook my head as a bitter taste filled my mouth.
“I know,” she said. “When I first came here, some of the things I saw shook my faith.”
“Really?” Julia was the last person I could imagine having a crisis of faith.
“Oh yes. One of the residents asked me how God could see the atrocities that go on and do nothing about them, and I realised I didn’t have an answer. Then I read the Gospels again and I remembered...”
“Yes?” I was intrigued.
“Whatever you do to the least of these, you do to Me,” she quoted softly. “God is doing something, every day. Through people like you and me and all of the many people in the world who do their bit. God did something for Leon today...through you.”
I swallowed hard, pushing back tears. “That’s beautiful,” I said quietly, “but also a lot of responsibility, don’t you think?”
Julia laughed. “Oh yes, it is. But no one said following Jesus would be easy...just worth it.”
Her words stayed with me all through lunch. Hayden held my hand under the table and I gripped it, feeling a wave of gratitude for him and our life, although I couldn’t help feeling it was all about to change beyond recognition.
Hayden
The first week at Camp Bano passed in a blur. I only saw Penny at meal and prayer times, and each evening we were both asleep as soon as our heads hit our pillows. There was so much to do, and by the end of the day, we were exhausted. On top of our assigned duties, everyone chipped in to help where they could, which meant there was barely a moment to breathe. Yet we were both enjoying ourselves, if ‘enjoying’ was the right word. Although the building work was intense, it was nothing I wasn’t used to, and as I adjusted to the climate, it took less of a physical toll on me.
I was enjoying training Felipe and even coming to realise that I had quite an aptitude for it, so much so that towards the end of the week, David asked me if I would consider teaching some basic construction skills to the older kids who attended the school and lived in the dorms. I jumped at the chance, although I didn’t have a clue where I would find the time.
Penny, too, seemed to be absolutely thriving. Her complexion glowed