What Love Can Do

I think that posting stories on here will 1. Keep me motivated to blog, and 2. Maybe be an encouragement to someone. :)

Yesterday during Vacation Bible School, yet another fight broke out caused by one of my boys - Molique. That fight marked number 21 for the week (just for him), and I quickly realized that I need some other method in order for that craziness to end. Let me tell you a little bit about this beautiful boy. Molique is an 7 year old kid, yet acts like a 20 year old. His face is always serious, and I rarely catch him smiling. Molique never cries, but instead gets angry and hits. He has a twin and 5 older siblings, all living in a 15x15 room at a homeless shelter. Molique is a part of the Latin Kings gang. Since he is only 7, his job as of right now is "guard." While things go down on the streets, he is the look out. He is looking forward to moving up in rank though.

When I caught him kicking a 13 year old in the stomach, I took a deep breath and took him into the hallway - again. This routine happens just minutes after I return to the classroom after I talk to the last kids who got in a fight. When I sat Molique down this time, instead of telling him how I expect better, how violence isn't tolerated, and how he will receive a warning, I took a different approach. I sat him down, looked him in the eyes and told him how much I loved him. I told him that he was such a servant, that he brought joy to the class and that I love seeing him each and every day. I told him that he doesn't always have to be so strong, that he is only 7 and should still be able to play like a kid. Throughout this, he didn't say a word. However when I looked down at him, he was silently crying. Once he saw me looking at him, he turned around, leaned into my shirt and sobbed. He sat there, shaking and crying for 15 minutes, each of us not saying anything. He then got up, nodded at me, and grabbed cups to serve lunch to his friends. The rest of the day he was fight-free and he was going out of his way to serve. 

Molique showed me how important it is to relax a little. In my class I have three rival gangs. I cant expect to have a "low-violence day" unless each and every one of these kids understand how much they are loved. I have learned more from a bunch of kids in the "ghetto" than I have from high-educated people. I'm going to miss these kids terribly... its incredible to see the improvement they have made from day one. They have stretched me more than I thought possible this summer.

More stories to come... :)