A Tragic Weekend

Victor is a friendly young man in his twenties, an identical twin in a united family and the father to two young girls.  We often ride the same bus home late afternoon, and he smiles and chats to my daughters.  Sadly, after Friday night he won´t be sharing a bus with us again anytime soon.  He is fighting for his life in ITU. 
  
After work he went to play football, had too much to drink, then attempted to ride home on a motorbike, with his teenage cousin, without a helmet.  Minutes later, he was sprawled across the road, bleeding gravely with a severe head injury.  It took half an hour for help to come, and he has been in Intensive Care in a coma ever since, with no signs of recovery so far. 

His young wife is distraught, his 4 and 9 year old daughters are asking if they will ever see their father again.  His family take turns to accompany him in the hospital, hoping and praying for a miracle. 

That same night in our village a drunken brawl broke out between two friends.  One man hit the other over the head repeatedly with a machete.  His eye has been sliced in two and he too is in ITU in a coma in Quito.  No one knows if he will live or die.  The man who commited the crime has fled.  Both these men are also fathers of young children in our village.   In one foul swoop alcohol abuse has destroyed the lives of three families. 

Daughters, nieces and sisters of these men were at our village Girls´ Brigade yesterday.  We prayed to the redemptive God who offers hope and strength in dark times.  Perhaps you will join me in praying for these young men, these families and our community. 

A 15th Birthday in Ecuador

Here in Ecuador a girl´s 15th birthday is the special one.  We recently had the privilege of attending the ceremony of a friend of ours, Johanna.  

The event took place in her church.  First the 14 flower girls and the boys partnering them processed down the aisle.  The girls were in splendid white and pink dresses and the boys in black suits.

 

Next the birthday girl entered with her pink dress and companion turned out immaculately... They processed through the lines of escorts lining the aisle. 

Once Johana was seated at the front of the church her father took off her flat shoes and put high heels on her feet.  Johanna had come of age.  She was now a woman.  Her sister carried the Bible on a pink cushion.  Her mother presented it to Johana as a valuable resource for her adult life ahead.  Then her father gave a speech about the funny things Johanna had done as a child - like the time she put salt in the lemonade, instead of sugar, and took it to her father while he was working in the fields.  Her mother followed with a speech about Johanna´s special qualities and ambition to study to be a nurse. 

The ceremony complete, the women bustled to the kitchen to serve the food.  Everyone received a plate of steaming rice and a slice of the huge pink cake. 

The party continued with games and music, with much laughter and joy.  Everyone was pleased to be celebrating the life of a special young lady, who was marking a new stage in her life.