Why?

Today I saw things that I see all the time, but it was seeing them all in one afternoon that broke my heart.
1) When Amy and I got to church there was a big box in front of the building with 8 puppies inside. One for sure was dead and the others were breathing, but it wouldn't take too long for these helpless little creatures to join their sibling. A few months ago we had seen another box of 3 dumped puppies. It makes me ssooooooo sad, I wish I could take them all home with me.

2) We started to go by the kids' homes to pick them up for Kids' Club. We got to this one house that is obviously the most poor family in this area. The kids are always really dirty- not just their clothes but their bodies as well. The kids never wear socks, and it's cold right now so they should be wearing socks. The little boy just turned six, and he came out with a big hole in his pants where a zipper should be, and he didn't have any underwear on. I wonder if he even has any.

3) As we were getting the kids, we went by a house in which a little girl was sitting on the ground in front by herself. She got really excited when she saw the other kids, and I could tell she wanted to go with us. I asked if she wanted to go, and although it was awkward going to the door to ask permission for her to go b/c I didn't know her at all, I went anyway because of the excitement on her face. The mom came down to tell me that it wouldn't be a good idea for her to go because she's deaf and mute. She wouldn't understand anybody, no one would understand her, and she wouldn't hear the traffic when crossing the street. By this time the girl had already gotten up and put away the stuff she had been playing with. So I told her mom that we would take good care of her, have her by the hand the whole time we were walking. She she gave permission for her to go, and the little girl shook hands with every single kid that was with us :-) Of course we couldn't communicate well, but now I'm ready to learn some Peruvian sign language!

4) As Amy and I were at the front of the church leading the kids in some songs, the trash truck came by and I watched as the guy jumped off the back of the truck, picked up the box in front of our building, and threw it in the trash truck. Amy and I looked at each other, knowing what was inside, and I could have cried right there in front of the kids :-(

5) When we were going to get the teenagers for their Bible study, we came across Rosa, just like we do every Saturday. Rosa is a 16 year old girl who has epilepsy. She's had a seizure when we were with her one time, and she doesn't know how to read because she hasn't been able to go to school because of her seizures. (they just don't have the money to get her the special education that she needs) She is very different and acts much younger than 16 years old. I know that her dad drinks b/c we've smelled it on him, but other than that I don't know much about her family. Today she came up to me, put her arm through mine as always, and said "not tooddayyy". This is normal as well (although she obviously always wants to go because no one's making her go), and I asked why she didn't want to go today. She pulled back her hair, revealing a huge, fresh wound around her cheekbone and temple. She didn't even have bandaids on it, and it looked pretty bad. My first thought was that it looked like someone had done this to her. And her first bit of offered information was, "It wasn't my dad. or my mom. or my brother." I said "Nobody did this to you?" She said, "no, it wasn't anybody in my house. i was....by myself today....eating....and...my chair...broke...and i fell". I'm pretty sure they don't really leave her alone in the house because of her seizures, and Amy and I had to wonder why she was so quick to say that no one did that to her??

I hate seeing such helplessness and wondering why some things have to be the way they are...what I want is to take all the dumped and stray dogs home with me, give all the kids clothes and underwear and shoes without holes in them, be able to communicate with the deaf/mute girl, be able to teach Rosa how to read and see her have a good home life...I want to help them all! It's sad to know we can't help every single one, but it's good to know that every single one does count.