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29 December 2017

Christmas in flesh and blood

On Christmas eve, I was surprised to see a couple of policemen with a youngster in our community room.  Fr John told me that the youngster was a past pupil of our Salesian school and needed a place for the night. So he'd be with us that night.  I was awake all through the time since I intended to participate in the midnight vigil service in the Parish.  I went down to the community room a couple of times and found the policemen speaking to this youngster.  I gathered he had not committed a crime serious enough for the police to arrest him and lock him up but there must have been something that necessitated their presence.

A while later a member of our community came in and found this whole scene a bit uncomfortable.  Since Fr John had by then left for Mass to some place, he came up to my room asking what was going on downstairs.  I told him as much as I knew.  But he was not in anyway consoled.  So he went down and spoke to the police officers themselves.  He then came up and informed me that the youngster had been caught up in a fight and had no place to go for the night.  Since he mentioned that he was a past pupil of the Salesians and that we would offer some assistance, they came to our place.  I told the confrere that Fr John has said that he'd be staying with us for the night and he also had left a note on the notice board to this effect.

Around 10.30 the policemen left.  I guessed they felt their work done and that the youngster could be left alone.  Our confrere was still quite agitated.  He then 'volunteered' to stay back (rather than go to the Parish for the vigil service as we had earlier thought of) and awake till Fr John returned from wherever he went for Mass.  He advised that I lock my room when I go for Mass, "just in case".

I found it a bit odd, an over-reaction.  Here was a youngster who in blind faith had sought help from the Salesians, after years of finishing his school.  If he was of any real danger, the police would have taken him into custody.  But they didn't.  So why should we be so alarmed.  After all, he was a youngster, may have been drunk or a bit high on drugs or maybe that was his way of talking (as I realised over the past couple of days), in need of shelter for the night.  And most important of all, it was Christmas eve!  We were about the celebrate the birth of a child who had no place of his own, born in someone else's cattle shed, far away from his own hometown, with no family or friends to assist his parents.

The youngster is still with us.  He was falsely accused in a violent incident and was himself a victim. However he is homeless.  He has two little children with a partner, whom he does not trust.  Yesterday he appeared in court and was cleared of all accusations.  He is currently looking for a place to stay, through the social services.  But being Christmas season, most places are full or under-staffed and hence he is still with us.  He is just 25 but talks as if he's an old man, about practically anything and everything!  A few other things are peculiar about him, but I guess they're more to do with the general lifestyle here than about him particularly.  However, I noticed something very noteworthy: Since the past four days he never took any food by himself, even though we asked him to help himself to whatever was available in the kitchen, just next to his room.  If invited he would join us for meals - just the one meal we have in common.  He could not go out for fear that when he returned there'd be no one to let him in.  So he'd sit, watch TV for sometime, smoke a bit in the garden...

I admire Fr John for his patience and trust.  He himself did not know this youngster, nor did the youngster know Fr John.  The young man's fond memories of time with the Salesians is mainly due to another Salesian who is presently not here.  But he was warmly invited to our Christmas meal, he received the same gift as did anyone of us at table that night.  There was no air of suspicion or superiority or condemnation of his present state of life.  No preaching or long lectures - neither in public nor privately!  Just offering him what he needs most at this point: a place to stay.  And while with us, he was as equal a guest as was anyone else!  No partiality! No deferential treatment. For me, it was a very humbling experience just to be around and listen and be of whatever help I could. A very unique experience of what Christmas could mean in flesh and blood. 

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