Yesterday...

Yesterday was our usual day for Tipitapa. We had a small class this time…only about 16 or so. It’s a holiday weekend and many of the students had family activities going on. Monday and Tuesday are major holidays here. I won’t go in to the lengthy explanation, but briefly, the Battle of San Jacinto is celebrated in remembrance of a victorious battle which took place on that same date in 1856 where a group of Nicaraguans defeated some American and European mercenaries who were funded by a man by the name of William Walker, who had declared himself president of Nicaragua on July 12, 1856. This is actually some pretty interesting historical reading if you ever get a notion to Google it and read up on it. It explains a lot of the generational distrust of Americans as the story of this battle is still taught with great fervency in the schools.

The odd thing is, I had never even heard of him until we moved here but everyone here knows his name and the immediate association is that he was from the United States and somehow we need to acknowledge our “defeat”. Whatever… I tend to agree with the Nicas after reading about Walker. He was pretty much a plague to the Central American nations and ended up being executed in Honduras at the age of 36. Wikipedia describes him as “an American Filibuster or pirate”. I think he earned his bad guy reputation…just wish he had not been from the U.S.

On the heels of San Jacinto Day, the country celebrates its Independence Day…although not their independence from us, but from Spain on September 17, 1821. There are lots of parties, drinking, fireworks, etc. Since the holidays fall on a Monday and Tuesday this year, many folks are enjoying an extended weekend which simply lengthens the time for partying. The schools are out and most businesses are closed these days so it’s a good day to just stay home and lay low…you never know who may want to bring up the subject of William Walker!

On the way to Tipitapa, Jim and I stopped and picked up some groceries for Kenneth’s family. Life is always a struggle for them but it’s even greater right now. I was hoping to also be able to take them some good news from the oncologist we saw on Thursday, but due to the holidays, he won’t be able to talk to them until at least mid-week next week. He had called Susanna to tell her that and also said that he had consulted with a pediatric specialist who felt as though Kenneth was already addicted to the morphine. I don’t think any of us were surprised by that…he’s been on it for some time now.

We had another great English class. The students are getting much better with their pronunciation. I have realized that quite a few of these students do not read well and don’t understand phonics at all, even though they speak one of the most phonetic languages there is. There are a handful who are really motivated to learn and I think the majority are there for the novelty of taking free English classes. It gives them a good excuse to get out and socialize with one another and they enjoy the break in their day. That’s okay ‘cause they all end up staying for Jim’s Bible study and that’s really why we’re there.

After English class, I asked Danelia if I could talk with her privately. She said yes and so during Jim’s class, we took two plastic chairs outside the church, found some shade between the buildings and sat down. I asked her how Kenneth was. Her eyes teared up a little and she told me that he had not slept well the night before, complaining of the pain in his leg. She said that he was weak and unsteady when he walked. She was afraid that they were going to have to go back to the hospital if he didn’t get better.

One of the things I wanted to talk to her about was helping her with repaying a loan that she had taken out while Kenneth was in the hospital. She had let it slip when she was talking with Susanna and me a few days earlier. We touched on it briefly but she was too embarrassed to discuss it with us in detail. We knew the basics but not the whole story. I wanted to know what was going on as the stress from this loan was obviously pushing her to a breaking point. Susanna and I both are concerned about Danelia’s health…she is an emotional wreck and not without good cause. She’s been told her son will soon die and that there’s not anything anyone can do to change that. I decided to wait that day until Jim and I had a chance to discuss it and pray about it. I didn’t want to approach Danelia and give her any false hopes regarding the loan. She’s had enough disappointment recently to last a lifetime.

Jim, Susanna and I discussed the situation on the way home last Thursday. Susanna is usually a bit skeptical to such situations as she’s well-versed with all the pleas for help, some are legitimate, many are not. She’s also very protective of us if she thinks someone is trying to take advantage of us. I’ve told her many times that it’s not our money, that it’s God’s and that if someone has not been honest with us, that it’s His score to settle. We definitely want to be good stewards but by the same token, we don’t want to be so critically analytical and distrustful of every encounter that we fail to show God’s mercy out of fear and a sense of protecting our own interests. She understands but I am also thankful that she will tell us if she thinks we’re in over our heads. I was relieved to hear that she also felt Danelia and her story were quite genuine,
tragically so.

Later, when we were home alone, Jim and I discussed the situation further. We agreed to pray about it and see later if we felt as though God was leading us in any particular direction. When we discussed it again on Saturday morning, there was no doubt what we were going to do and we were very much at peace about it.

Yesterday, sitting in the shade, I told Danelia I wanted to talk to her about something and I didn’t want to embarrass her or offend her. She looked at me with a very puzzled look on her face. I told her I wanted to talk to her about the loan she had mentioned the other day. She looked horrified and then looking down, I saw the tears quietly begin to fall. She told me in a very subdued voice that she was terribly embarrassed that she had let the words out of her mouth when she was talking to Susanna and me. I assured her I hadn’t said anything to Miguel or her family.

She asked me what I wanted to know and I told her to start at the beginning and tell me everything. I knew it was going to be a lengthy and painful story as she was also working out her own grief and anger at the situation with Kenneth intermingled with dealing with her own emotions about this loan looming over her head. As she talked, I could feel the anger beginning to rise within me.

Danelia used to be a school teacher but when Kenneth became so ill last summer (winter, our time), she had to quit. When she was working, her income added to her husband’s enabled them to take care of their basic needs. But with Danelia no longer working, they were falling further and further behind with their bills.

Even though they get free medical care at La Mascota Hospital, they only get the medicines free if the hospital pharmacy happens to have them. Many times they do not. And, if the doctor decides to give him an injection for pain, the family has to pay for that. The injections run about 240 cord each (approximately $12 ). That sounds pretty reasonable, doesn’t it? It’s not when you’re only bringing in $117 a month and you’re struggling as it is. They also have to pay for transportation back and forth to the hospital and although the hour long bus ride (one way) costs only about $2.50 round trip for she and the kids to and from Managua, that quickly adds up and eats up their “expendable” income…I hope you know that was said tongue-in-cheek. There is no such thing for this family.

From the time Kenneth was first diagnosed, Danelia has tried to feed Kenneth the diet the doctors prescribed…again, an impossibility with their income. Chicken costs $1.00 per pound at the open air market, with rice and beans each costing just under 50 cents a pound. We can’t imagine what it’s like to live off mainly rice and beans with little else thrown in for variety…but they know all too well. Chicken or fish is a rare treat. Beef hardly ever makes it to their kitchen. Bananas are about the only fresh fruit they can afford to buy and if they buy a vegetable, it’s usually ayote.

Out of desperation and without her husband’s knowledge, when Kenneth was hospitalized in February, Danelia went to a woman she knew to get a loan. The woman agreed and told her she would loan her the money at 20% interest. Danelia felt she had no other alternative and would have agreed to anything at that point. There was no written contract, simply a woman begging for help and another woman playing the role of an opportunistic benefactor.
Danelia has been struggling to repay the loan a little at a time and much to her credit, had managed to pay off about 1/3 of the principle. But now, the woman has called in the rest of the loan and gave Danelia until the end of the month to pay it all off. If that weren’t stressful enough for Danelia, the woman told her that because she hadn’t paid it off earlier that she now owed almost double the amount. Danelia tried to explain to her that as Kenneth’s condition worsens, their expenses are continuing to go up. The woman was not sympathetic. She told Danelia that if she didn’t get all her money by the month’s end, that she would go the television and the radio and announce what bad character Danelia had. That was the last straw for this poor woman.

My first question was if the woman was a Christian. Danelia shook her head “no”. She was just the only person she knew who would have money to loan. I asked her if there was any kind of written contract. Again, a shake of the head. When I asked her what would happen if she didn’t pay the full amount the woman was now demanding by the end of the month and Danelia told me of the threat, I swear I could feel my blood pressure about to top out.

Now let me explain that threat business to you. To us, that sounds like a hollow threat, even a ludicrous one. But here, there is a radio station where you can say whatever it is you want to say about anyone. No one cares whether the allegations are true or not and no one does any kind of investigation on those who are calling in or those who are being called about. There is also the same type of thing on one of the television stations. In theory, it’s to alert people to disreputable businesses or illegal practices. It’s actually an outlet for a lot of venom. Danelia was terrified that this woman was going to follow through with her treat.

Danelia had nowhere to turn for help - she had not told anyone about this loan as she was embarrassed and her family and church had already helped all they could. The pressure was mounting, the time was running short so she finally told Arturo. He was furious…he was upset with Danelia for doing this behind his back, angry with himself for not being able to make enough money for the family, angrier still with the cancer that is taking his son away from him day by day and angriest with this unconscionable skirt-wearing loathsome loan shark…okay…that’s my description of that woman. I feel it’s accurate.

Arturo didn’t get any further with the woman, than did Danelia. She was holding firm. She was not at all compassionate regarding their circumstances and did not show any interest at all in Kenneth’s condition. She wants her money…all of it, including the inflated interest and the horrendous “penalty” amount. Arturo became very angry with her and told her what an awful human being she is to charge such an outlandish interest amount on a loan and then to tack on the penalty. He tried to explain to her that if they were having trouble repaying the original loan, how did she expect them to pay what is now more than double what they owed. Her response was that wasn’t her problem, that she wanted her money and she wanted it in full by the end of the month or she was going to the media and tell them that the Gonzalez family are terrible people who do not honor their word or pay their debts.

I took a deep breath and took hold of her hand. Jim and I had already discussed most of this so I felt confident in what I was about to do. I told her that we thought we could help her with the loan situation. I told her that if the time came that they could start to pay it back a little at a time, then that would be wonderful, but that was not something we wanted her to worry about right now. I told her that there would be no interest and that we didn’t want this hanging over her head as another worry.

I said that her focus needed to be on Kenneth and Lindsay right now, especially now. Jim and I feel that if we could help alleviate this stress from her life, then she might have more strength to give in the coming days… as it’s only going to become more difficult given Kenneth’s situation. I also told her that since she had verbally agreed to the woman asking the 20% interest, that I felt like it had to be paid, exorbitant figure that it was, but that in no uncertain terms did I feel that the “penalty” figure should be paid. That was not part of their original agreement and it was nothing more than a form of extortion.

I told her that I had the money on me and that I would give it to her and Arturo when we took her home so they could go get that woman paid off. I also told her to tell the woman that what she was getting was what they had originally agreed upon and that there would be not be any more money coming. I told Danelia if the woman went to the television station or the radio station, she would be the one ending up looking bad considering how she was trying to get more money than to which she was entitled and not to worry what she did or said.

Watching Danelia at that moment was like watching a dam break in slow motion. She almost doubled over sobbing and it was as though all the pent-up emotion for the last year, found an outlet. There was not only a flood of tears, there were torrents of words pouring out of her mouth. She had hold of my hands and kept squeezing them and rubbing them. Even though she started talking a mile a minute and I couldn’t even begin to translate her rapid-fire words, I completely understood her heart and her face. You see gratitude a lot here on the faces of those you help. In the States, we tend to be polite and that’s how we issue our words of appreciation…politely. We are taught to thank other folks for the nice things they do for us…here, it is pure, unadulterated, deeply heart-felt gratitude that comes pouring out from those held captive by their circumstances and situations. Danelia was a prime example of that. To her, there weren’t enough words of thanks and there wasn’t enough time to tell me what this meant to her and her family. It was the right thing to do…

When we took Danelia home, I saw Kenneth’s drawn little face peeking out the window. As soon as we stopped, Lindsay came flying out the door to give us hugs. Jim stood guard over the open back door of the 4-Runner while Lindsay and I carried the groceries in that Jim and I had bought earlier in the day for this family.

When we finished with that, we all went inside so that we could be with Kenneth. He had been in bed all day. When I asked how he was, he replied in his usual manner that he was fine. No, he wasn’t. The pain marks were etched in to his precious little face. It made me want to cry. Even though he continued to lay on his bed, he reached up and gave hugs and kisses and kept smiling at us. He knew we had brought him a sandia (watermelon) and that was enough to make any little boy happy!

Danelia and Arturo brought us chairs to sit in but I told her we needed to go. She knows we like to be back to Managua before dark. She asked if we could pray together. I told her I would love it if we did. We gathered in a circle near Kenneth’s bed and we all joined hands. Danelia prayed an emotional and powerful prayer and asked several times for God to bless us. Oh, my goodness…how could I ever explain to her that He has…repeatedly!

So, that’s pretty much how the day went yesterday. The heat, the classes and the emotion of the day were draining my last little bit of energy. I find I can’t talk to much about Kenneth or my own flood of tears begins. I hadn’t wanted to get attached to a little boy with cancer…God heard my voice but He also saw my heart. He knew I needed the blessing that’s known as Kenneth.
When Susanna was driving Danelia, Miguel and Kenneth home from Managua after the doctor’s appointment on Thursday, it was pretty quiet in the car. Everyone appeared to be lost in their own thoughts. I was sitting up front with Susanna and she asked if I believed that God has a plan for each one of us and that we are each called to do what He has laid upon our hearts and put in to our spirits. She said she remembered how I questioned why God would want us to come to Nicaragua. She said she thought she had the answer and that it was for such a time as this. I have thought about it a lot since she said it…I guess she’s right.