An Advent Reflection
Growing up my father was a refugee from Vietnam, and although only one of my parents was a refugee, I was able to empathize with his pain of not fitting in, of being called a “jungle boy” and struggling to communicate with others. Both my parents despite their different backgrounds, always emphasized the importance of education. My mother gave all the children access to books which filled our imaginations and ignited a joy for reading at a young age. By learning to read, I discovered how vast the world was and how many things I didn’t know. This simple moment, sparked my curiosity for learning, which is something I hold dear even to this day. While contemplating my own life events as well as my strengths, I decided to seek an organization which my history could relate to and where I could develop close relationships with others and show them the value of education. Luckily, through God’s grace, I was scrolling on Instagram one day and found Refugee Resources, a faith based organization who offered to empower children’s literacy through one-to-one mentoring.
I am at a loss of words for how thankful and life giving it is to mentor Cindy each Thursday at Reading Circle and learn more about her family, traditions, and what 6 year olds are up these days! Cindy like many other of our Thursday reading circle students is from Burma. She loves rainbows, unicorns, and especially Hot Cheetos!
As I meditate on this Advent season, I am reminded of the beauty found in waiting. Just like our ancestors waited on the messiah and we wait for Jesus, we wait on our children we mentor. They miss a word, we wait for them to pronounce the word correctly. We explain words and concepts to them and we wait for them to understand. But in our waiting, we remain reverent in hope and reverent in change. Over time we see the fruits of our labor exhibited by the child’s happiness expressed in picking up a book and willingness to share what they have learned this week. I’ve been mentoring Cindy now for a year and it has been amazing! She has gone from being scared of being wrong, to open to asking questions when she doesn’t know something. We all are continuous learners and the beauty of teaching is not only found in what you give, but also what you receive. We receive the gift of patience, of forgiveness, of faithfulness, of love, and of joy. These gifts not only work in perfecting our faith internally, but overflow out of us to the people around us, manifesting to the world Jesus’s love for all.
“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5:14-16)
Written by: Trang Duong