The cafeteria is being remodeled at the Bangkok Orphanage. The kids are gathered in the courtyard, where we just serenaded them with song and play. One in our group, Jana Stanfield, can sing and the rest of us are simply stumbling choral backup dancers. Next is lunch, which is brought to them in baskets and trays. We help in passing out the packets of food.
Then our hosts invite us to enter the place where the children are cared for that are unable to walk and, in many cases, even sit up. We remove our shoes as we enter the area, as they are lying on mats and having lunch. The floor is their kitchen table. Let that sink in for a moment. The floor is their kitchen table. My spirit is thinking, I have so much and yet can feel so lacking. I am humbled.
What happened next, I did not expect, was ready for, nor may never ever see again. Children with the most sever handicaps and limited capabilities, spoons in hand… feeding each other. They are unable to feed themseves, so they feed each other. With the little they have, they feed each other.
Charity, care, or compassion? Possibly it’s to simply meet the basic need of eating the only way possible. To forget themselves and to focus on another, they each are fed. They feed each other. The hunger is quenched and the human spirit is touched in the deepest of ways. Through another they are cared for.
Take a look this short video and notice the smiles and ask yourself, “How may I feed another today? Where may I bring a little joy, hope, or show concern? Could it be that in doing so, my soul may the one that is actually fed?” In the background, Jana’s song takes on new meaning, “I want to be your friend, a little bit more…”
