Gretchen Kiefer

Dear Saints John & Paul Parish,

My name is Gretchen Kiefer and I was one of the missionaries blessed to have the experience of traveling to Honduras. I am aware this letter may be coming in later than others, but to put the experience I had into words is close to impossible; so, instead of writing about the entire trip, I would like to focus on one amazing little girl I met at the Malnutrition Center who made a lasting impact on my life.

For the last day in Honduras, we went to the Malnutrition Center. During the big group meeting  the night before the Center, Tiffany, a rep from Soles for Souls, warned us about what we may see at the Center, but no admonition could prepare us for what we were about to undertake  the following day.

The morning of we all piled into our vans with strangers who turned into our best friends and headed out. On the way to the center, we all were laughing, playing games, and taking in the memories  from the distributions of the previous  days. As we arrived I could see some of the children through the bars of the gate, and I was already taken aback by how unhealthy  and depressed they appeared to be. The thirty of us walked in and all piled around the outside while one of our group leaders, Raul, translated what the lady from the Center was saying. She told us about the girl who was sitting there staring at us through the bars, was an astonishing twenty years old. The moment I saw her, I would have guessed  she was around nine or ten years old because  of how tiny and underdeveloped she appeared. After a short speech about the Center and pictures, we entered the building, unaware our lives will never be the same.

Like many of my fellow girls, we made a 8-line  to the room with the babies first, because who doesn’t want to love on some Honduran babies?  They shied away from us at the beginning, seeming to not even care we were there at all. Finally, some of us mustered up some bravery and picked them up to hold. Looking around and seeing how my friend, Sydney, got her baby to warm up to her, I wanted that experience as well, so I picked up a little boy who seemed a bit fussy. Now, I am going to flat out say, I am not a baby person. I love babies, but I just can’t seem to calm them down when they start crying, which is exactly what happened when I picked this little baby boy up. Immediately he started crying and as soon as he started wailing, I knew I had to give him to somebody  else or he would never stop. Luckily, Jen was nearby and offered to take him. She was able to calm him down, almost to sleep, and I was absolutely  amazed  at her skills with children. After the debacle with the little boy, I went outside to see what was happening with some of the older kids there.

As I went out, I saw a little girl sitting at a tiny table playing with rubber bands. I was informed her name is Denya and she is special needs and not very responsive to people, but something  was drawing me to her and I knew I had to get to know her. I went over and tried to get her to smile, but she would just look at me with curious eyes and return to her rubber bands. My friend, Maddee Abbs, helped me fit Denya with much needed new shoes. As I began to take her old, worn out shoes off and put her brand new ones on, something  about that caught her attention. I remembered the night before how Keith Bish, my small group leader and one of my favorite people told me about how he tickled kids feet to make them laugh at the other distribution. Using that as inspiration, I thought I would give it a try. I grabbed her foot and before I put her new shoe on I tickled her foot and she actually began to smile which made me unbelievably happy because  I knew I could get her laughing by the end of our time there. After tending to the shoes I thought of how bubbles made the kids at the other distribution  giggle with happiness, so I immediately rushed inside in search for some bubbles.

Luckily, there was still some packed away in the toy bag. I held the soapy goodness  up to my mouth and blew. Bubbles began to fly out and she looked up, and gave the most beautiful smile I had ever seen in my life. She had two dimples the size of moon craters and the longest, craziest eyelashes I had ever seen. Her big brown eyes met mine, and I was filled with a warmth in my heart I doubt could never be matched. As I sat there blowing bubbles,  her smile appeared more often. After a few minutes of bubbles, she seemed to grow bored with it, so I went over and sat down on a step with another little girl who was crazy for the bubbles. Not long after I sat down, I heard Denya running over to sit next to me, so fast she almost tripped over the step and crashed onto the floor. Luckily, my cat like reflexes saved her. Maddee  and I sat on the floor while Denya sat on a small chair and threw a ball to us. At this point, her smile was close to constant on her face and I was so overwhelmed with love for this little girl in front of me I began to get teary eyed at the thought of her after we left. Who would play with this little girl like we are? The workers there, God bless them for the work they do to bring all of these kids back to health, but they have all the other kids to take care of, there is no way they have time to give this much attention to her. We were warned to stay quiet and respectful at the Center because  the kids there can easily get upset about loud noises and big groups, but as I looked around Tiffany was banging the tambourine  while everyone clapped and the kids were dancing. Everyone  with a baby was walking around and talking to them. It amazed me how much these kids changed when we showed them just a little bit of love. I could not stop thinking of how we got these kids to open up to us in such a small amount of time. I gathered  myself together, telling myself there will be time for crying later, but I need to live this moment now with as much joy as I can. However, Denya had a different idea when she came over and quite literally fell into my lap and hugged me like she never wanted me to leave. I could feel the love and happiness  emanating out of her. Viewing the rest of my friends running around and laughing I was taken aback by the visible difference we had on these kids. Before we came they just sat there and played with the worn out and beaten toys, trying to keep themselves amused. When we left, I could tell their spirits were up and happiness  was surrounding them.

I keep thinking about how crazy it is that bubbles, shoes, and love were the main things that changed these kids hearts. It is so upsetting  coming back here, and seeing how we take these for granted. Every child around here has played with bubbles in their life whether it be at a birthday party or just a summer day, and they have just as much fun as a Honduran  kid with these simple toys, yet will forget about them two hours later, while a child down there will remember  it for a lifetime. When we need new shoes, we head to the nearest Foot Locker or Dicks to pick up the hottest pair of shoes, but the children of Honduras  will sometimes  have to wait for a shoe distribution like the ones we conducted. But most importantly, we take for granted the love we are surrounded with by our friends, family, and sometimes even strangers on the street. At the Malnutrition Center, I have no idea the last time those kids were drowning  in love like they were that day, and it upsets me to think how they do not know the next time they will be.

Coming back to the U.S. I am so much more aware of how much we take for granted. Even the smallest houses here are luxurious  compared  to the houses in Honduras. The children here always have bubbles, shoes, and most importantly have someone to count on to show them love. The stark difference between  Honduras  and the United States is unsettling. We have so much to give to others, we have so many chances to be kind, we immersed in love we can share with others. I thank God every day for the people that are in my life right now, the blessings I have, and for the opportunity to go on the trip to Honduras. Thank you so very much Saints John & Paul, for sending me on this mission trip. The story I shared with you is just one of many that made a lasting impact on me from this trip. I am not the same person I am when I left on for Honduras, and I will never be the same. I could never thank you or the people of the parish enough for allowing me this experience. Truly, truly, thank you.

God Bless, Gretchen Kiefer