Written by Gabi El-Massri (Border Trip 2023)
With an early start to the morning, the team departed to Sacred Heart’s shelter. We spent nearly the entire day there: moving boxes, creating shelves, cleaning bathrooms, moping the floors, and serving lunch. We were blessed to be able to assist not only the staff but also the Red Cross workers in their service of the migrants by providing an infrastructure to their stock rooms, both impressing and shocking them by the amount of work we got done.
Intermittently, we left the dust filled rooms to play with the children. Most of our friends from Tuesday were still staying at the shelter, as they shrieked with joy every time one of us became available to play. What a blessing it was to allow space for these children, who have witnessed horrors and insurmountable struggles, to be children. To play with toys, smile, and laugh like they had not just traveled thousands of miles for the chance at a better life. To put it into perspective- most children there were between the ages of 2-8 and were from Venezuela, meaning they had to cross the Darien Gap. If you do not know what this is, I highly suggest to research it. It is a dangerous path through the jungle where few make it out alive and/or un-traumatized.
Before we knew it, the clock struck 4 pm and it was time to go. We were sent on our way with a flurry of hugs and emotions. None of us wanted to leave, though we had been there for 7 hours. When we arrived back to our apartments, Sister Debbie was waiting to debrief us. We shared our most impactful moments of the trip, bringing many of us to tears as we reflected on the resilience and beauty we had experienced. We were in awe of the strength they had and the trust they still had in God, regardless of how hard their path had been and will continue to be. They are truly the most faithful people I have ever met, despite having every reason not to be.
Later in the evening, we departed to a local restaurant to celebrate Dr. Commins’ birthday! Unknowingly, we stepped in a vegan restaurant with no sign of meat or gluten free options in sight. Nevertheless we sat there for nearly 3 hours, talking and playing games such as What Do You Meme and Russian Tic Tac Toe. We are now settling into a restful evening, basking in each others presences before we depart at 7 am tomorrow morning. Good night Charlotte!
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