“Great catch! Throw it here now, right here!”
On Sunday afternoons outside the orphanage in Charikar, English and Afghan voices rang in the air together as American soldiers and Afghan orphans played Frisbee, speaking and yelling in two different languages but laughing in the same. These times of interaction quickly became the highlight of the week for both soldiers and orphans.
While most of the conversation with the orphanage staff was through our Afghan interpreters, the soldiers interacted with the kids more through actions. “We communicated with hugs, smiles, or kicking a soccer ball,” said Gessner. “Most of the kids just wanted to hang around us. Of course, having a pocket full of candy was always a help. The kids were always well-behaved.”
When Gessner’s unit passed out the stuffed animals, they took the opportunity to try to teach the English names to the kids. “In one case, they were having trouble with the word ‘gorilla’ so we settled on ‘monkey.’ The digital cameras were another great hit with the kids. For group photos, they liked passing around and wearing our hats.”
Most of the children had picked out their favorite soldiers by the fourth week of the visits, though not everyone. One little girl didn’t smile much despite the stuffed animals, candy, digital cameras, Frisbee, and soccer games. Gessner decided to make it his personal mission to brighten her day.
“I tried everything that worked with my own kids, including funny faces and wearing my hat backwards,” said Gessner. “I even showed her how to smile by pushing the corners of my mouth up with my fingers. She did the same thing. After all of that, it was time to take the gloves off so I dove in amongst the girls and turned it into a tickle-fest. The smiles and laugher came out. Mission accomplished.”
Lord, help me make it a priority to bring joy to those around me.
“A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.” (Proverbs 17:22)