Odor of sweat, unwashed bodies, urine, rats and cockroaches penetrates my nose as I make my way through small streets. I bend my knees while walking, so I will not hit my head against the low roofs that are sticking out. "Mister, mister" "bule" I hear around me. I simply greet and smile on the Indonesian way as I pass by "permissi". I ask" Me'em can you tell me where I can find the house of S.?" Ofcourse they know, they always know. "S. is not home" I turn around and see the biggest smile on the beautiful face of E. The 7 year old of S.. "Mama will be home soon" he says. So we wait in the front of this little house while the rats eat the rice leftovers from yesterday.
Me and my teammate decided to visit one of the girls because she asked us to. She told us she is sick. We saw her a couple of days ago when we took her and her son to the mall. Gave them a decent meal to eat. After that we received a phone call that she was sick. But obviously she feels better since she isn't home. It was quite a hassle to find them. The person who suppose to pick us up from the local market decided to not show up. But gave us vague instructions instead. Then we could not reach S. by phone. My teammate told me it always happens. I have a lot of growing in patient to do. Finally after more than an hour later we arrive at this little place. That left me speechless. I could not talk for the first hour. I cannot find any words in any language to describe how it looked like or how I felt. I could not believe my own eyes. I could not believe that 'my' dear S. and E. are living here.
As S. came home, she opened the door and excused herself for her house. A little room 2 by 3 meters with something on the ground that looks like mattress on the ground. I count 3 bottles of glue to sniff. No toilet, no running water, but rats and fleas instead. Walls so thin and zero privacy. Salt is thrown on the bed because Satan had entered her body, “that's why she's sick” her neighbors said.
I felt tears burning behind my eyes. And wanted to scream "Why is this world so unfair?" I feel all frustration from earlier that day, about waiting, not holding promises and time, melting away. From the inside I cry out “please show us how!”
We talk for a while and decide to wait for the next day to bring her to the doctor. So we can go to a clinic that provides medical care for people without identity cards and directly gives medicine too. We leave a little fresh water supply and food. As we found out she didn't eat since the last time we meet. I look at her and see how skinny she is. Her eyes lay deep in her skin. I can see all signs of malnutrition and see that live on the street is wearing her young body out. Her cough worries me to. And her living circumstances don' help at all either.
In her eyes I see the fear to face the night. I know she will run into the arms of her boyfriend and that it will only be a matter of time when she'll tell us another child is on the way. Even though today we told her again she has a choice, there is hope and a future, there is a way out if she wants to. But she needs to be the one to choose that way. And I just pray with all that is within me, she will find the courage to step into the unknown. And starts walking down that road to discover that there are many more walking down that pathway called Hope...
