Summer 2013: 7/16/13 Day 5 - Jimmy Wong

Belize STM- Day 5 July 16, 2013

(Read this in a Kriol accent) It’s hard to believe that we are already halfway through our trip! Our entire team went to Pickstock today to continue working on the culturally inspired mural. Going into the day, I didn’t remember too much of Pickstock. The only time I’ve ever been there was the very first time I was in Belize, five years ago. Pickstock was also the place where I had infamously stepped into the open sewer system. I have tried to forget that day ever since… All jokes aside, I was excited to go back and paint. Right as we arrived there, it became apparent to our team that not all 24 of us needed to be painting the wall at once. We were encouraged to go out and play with the children there! Over the next seven hours we spent there, our team gave at LEAST a million piggyback rides, the most ridiculous face/arm/leg paintings, and sang the craziest renditions of “Boom Chicka Boom” I have ever heard. However none of this could even compare to the look of joy and happiness I saw on the faces of the children there. God has really blessed our team with people of so many different personalities and talents. This has allowed us to connect with these kids on so many different levels. I watched as my teammates were able to spark some meaningful and intimate friendships with the kids there. By the end of the day, it was almost as if we had been there all of our lives, some of the children and our team were nearly inseparable.

I was especially thankful for the way God was able to use me today. I was extremely joyous to be able to share my talents in a country that actually used the term “football” correctly. Throughout the time in Pickstock, I was constantly on the basketball court, playing soccer with the kids there and they were all so thrilled to play soccer with “Jet Li”! I had the privilege of meeting so many of the kids that way, and as I started talking to them I found out the commonalities we shared. A kid named Edelle pulled me aside and the conversation went:

“Sir, what team you like?”

“Madrid, Real Madrid!”

“Me too!”

Hala Madrid.

Shortly afterwards, I found myself sitting next to one of the first boys I met at Pickstock that day, talking about his favorite team, FC Barcelona (Also the world’s worst team). We talked about various soccer stars from around the globe and about the different matches he saw on TV. He even got around to showing me his brand new Puma soccer cleats, the exact same brand my prized cleats were. I was blown away by how this common ground we shared transcended all of the differences we had. That was when I realized that God gives us these exact personalities, interests, talents, abilities, for this exact reason: To be able to connect and reach out to His children. Our team returned back to the hotel safely, tired, but with renewed hearts.

Thanks for your continued prayer and support,

Jimmy Wong