Reunion

I saw an amazing thing.
Last time I went to the refugee camp, the UNHCR car had an extra errand to do on the way. We picked up a 9-year-old girl from an orphanage. She is not an orphan but had been living in the orphan house for almost six months. This little girl was brutally assaulted by some men living at the camp. She was seriously injured to the extent that after she was released from the hospital, she was too weak to make the hour-long trip between the camp and the medical center. The orphanage is near the hospital so arrangements were made for her to live there until she healed physically. She has been separated from her mom for almost six months. Our job for the day was to take her back to live with her mother. While some of the group managed the paperwork, she wanted to change her dress so she would look special for her mom. She changed it twice.
As we drove out to the camp, she could hardly sit still. She fidgeted excitedly and carefully took in everything around her.
The plan was to meet her mom at a gas station outside the camp. Without phones, we could not call to confirm. Everyone in the truck was very nervous that her mom would not be there for some reason. None of us could bear her to feel any disappointment.
Thankfully, her mom was there. She let out a squeal when we pulled into the parking lot. Before the car could stop, she was scrambling out and was instantly enfolded in her mother’s arms. They twirled around as her mom began to cry.

I was very humbled to bear witness to this moment. It felt like a sacred moment, one in which the deepest longings of two people were met in a reunion. I hope it was a redemptive moment, one that marks a shift from surviving a horror to healing and new life.