Nine-year old Arnold Zenasti and his little sister, Sarah, sat huddled together in the corner of their small thatched-roof hut in Malawi They were holding hands tightly under a piece of blanket. The hut was crowded with relatives and friends come to prepare their mother’s body for burial. They knew their mother would be buried next to their father, who had died only months before. But where they would go?
In the small village graveyard Arnold and Sarah solemnly threw a handful of dirt on their mother’s casket in the open grave and said goodbye. They stood silently by their grandmother’s side until everyone had paid their last respects and the men had filled in the hole. Then each took her hand and walked the narrow path to her house.
Agogo (grandmother) bent over with difficulty to start a fire. Once it was going she asked Arnold to lift the heavy cooking pot onto the fire. She had a few vegetables and some maize flour for nsima . They would eat well tonight. But what about tomorrow night and the nights after that? She would pray to God about it. No matter what, the children must keep going to school.
Each morning Arnold took his sister by the hand and walked to the nearby primary school. He made sure she was settled before he went to his own class. During mango or guava season he would carefully tuck a piece of fruit into her pocket to eat in the middle of the day. When there was no fruit in season, they would go hungry until suppertime. But Agogo always had something for them to eat when they got home. Often they would sit around the fire at night and listen to her wonderful stories until they fell asleep.
Before a year had passed, Arnold and Sarah again huddled in the corner of a small thatched-roof hut. It was crowded with relatives and friends come to prepare their grandmother’s body for burial. A tear escaped and ran down Sarah’s cheek. Arnold noticed and squeezed her hand more tightly to reassure her.
After the burial, they stood alone by the gravesite. The sun dipped behind the acacia tree on the edge of the graveyard. It cast a shadow, sending a chill through them. Just before dark, their grandmother’s sister came up the path, beckoning them to come. They each took her hands and helped her along the path to her house. Arnold lit a fire. Sara found a few sweet potatoes to cook.
The children kept on going to school. But it was hard to study when their stomachs were growling with hunger. After school they searched for greens, nuts or fruit to eat. Sometimes they wandered around the village hoping someone would give them something to eat. They knew there would be nothing waiting for them when they got home. Sometimes people gave them food, but often no one noticed them at all.
One Saturday, the children decided to go to the maize mill to glean husks from the milling floor. Passing an old whitewashed store, they stopped to stare. Children were everywhere — in the yard, on the porch, sitting under an overhanging rock, eating. They were laughing and talking and singing. Arnold and Sarah looked longingly at the plates of nsima and beans. Arnold urged his little sister through the small gate. They found themselves in a serving line, where everyone welcomed them. How good the food tasted!
This center, called Ministry of Hope, was started by the local Presbyterian church to care for children just like them. They were welcome to come for a hot meal every day. They could play with friends and work in the community gardens in the afternoon. And best of all, they could sit with elders and listen to wonderful stories about God. Arnold no longer felt so alone and so afraid.
Not long afterward, Arnold and Sarah were once again huddled in the corner of a hut. Once again relatives and friends had come to prepare a body to be buried. This time, their great aunt had died. The children held hands under the new blanket they had received from the center. Sarah looked up at her big brother and smiled shyly as he squeezed her hand. They didn’t know where they would be going, but they knew God had promised them hope for the future.
Pray for Arnold and Sarah and other children of Malawi who have no one to care for them. Pray for the staff of the Ministry of Hope.
- Adapted from "Ministry of Hope", by Fletcher Matandika and Nancy Dimmock, Church & Society magazine, Nov./Dec. 2003.
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