Brief Encounter
Dear Jun,
I am saddened by your unexpected goodbye. Was it only last year when you joined the summer youth camp? It was a week of fun and exciting activities at the camp rock. You were there as a camper. I was there to speak about personhood. There were many young people like you who were there in the hope of making right what they did wrong and in the struggle of weaving new dreams inspite of the difficult situation they were in.
Our next encounter was few weeks after that camp. You c0ame to join the youth volunteers who'd like to teach young kids. It was during the daily vacation Bible school that summer of 2003. If I remember it right, you gave me a little hard time trying to make you concentrate on learning the basic child care in preparation for the DVBS because you would occasionally escape. I would find you having fun with a couple of other young men playing skateboard. But you were a softened man then. You never resisted my reprimand and never complained whenever I reminded you to go back to your work and leave your skateboard activities for a while. It was a difficult task for me to involve young men like you who had never experienced teaching kids and who are more interested in other things than teaching children. But it was a fine summer escapade for you and me. You didn't turn up during the actual DVBS. It was not your cup of tea after all.
And then I saw you again. It was during the youth leadership training in Baguio City in December 2003. Very good looking and friendly young man. It has now become a very special camp. There will never have a chance for me to see you in one of those camps again.
In January this year, you joined the Oplan Diploma. You wanted to pass the government examination for high school diploma. You wanted to go to college and fulfill your dreams. There were almost 20 of you who wanted to try again. We all agreed that there is always a second chance. We all affirmed that it is never too late to correct what we've done wrong.
I remember, too, that special Sunday. You came to the church and testified about how happy you were because your dad gave you a new guitar! Your face revealed the immeasurable joy you felt inside.
Now after only a year of our journeying together, you had to go. I will never understand why. I am sad that ours was only a brief encounter. We didn't go a long way in our attempt to rediscover a life for you that is different from what you used to have. At the time when you were picking up the pieces, coming to terms with yourself, with God and with your family, just when you were learning to forgive and love yourself, just when you were enjoying your new found life in Christ. You suddenly had to go.
Goodbye Jun. We will surely miss you. I want you to know that we are sorry we couldn't ease your burden and we weren't there when you experienced your deepest hurts. We never wanted you to have lived a difficult life. It is our hope that you are ready to face our creator now that He has taken you home. We love you.
love,
Ate Mide
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Jun Monsalve was one of the members our youth ministry called Kabataang Malaya. He was once a street gang member, a group which was sometimes involved in street violence. He lived a renewed life after he came to know Christ. It was not an abrupt change of lifestyle. Yet his life was a testimony of how God can change the heart and life of a repentant man. Jun was stabbed to death by a new 'friend' in the community who didn't take possitively Jun's reprimand not to treat a common friend badly. Jun died at the age of 20 on Sept 4, 2004.
I am saddened by your unexpected goodbye. Was it only last year when you joined the summer youth camp? It was a week of fun and exciting activities at the camp rock. You were there as a camper. I was there to speak about personhood. There were many young people like you who were there in the hope of making right what they did wrong and in the struggle of weaving new dreams inspite of the difficult situation they were in.
Our next encounter was few weeks after that camp. You c0ame to join the youth volunteers who'd like to teach young kids. It was during the daily vacation Bible school that summer of 2003. If I remember it right, you gave me a little hard time trying to make you concentrate on learning the basic child care in preparation for the DVBS because you would occasionally escape. I would find you having fun with a couple of other young men playing skateboard. But you were a softened man then. You never resisted my reprimand and never complained whenever I reminded you to go back to your work and leave your skateboard activities for a while. It was a difficult task for me to involve young men like you who had never experienced teaching kids and who are more interested in other things than teaching children. But it was a fine summer escapade for you and me. You didn't turn up during the actual DVBS. It was not your cup of tea after all.
And then I saw you again. It was during the youth leadership training in Baguio City in December 2003. Very good looking and friendly young man. It has now become a very special camp. There will never have a chance for me to see you in one of those camps again.
In January this year, you joined the Oplan Diploma. You wanted to pass the government examination for high school diploma. You wanted to go to college and fulfill your dreams. There were almost 20 of you who wanted to try again. We all agreed that there is always a second chance. We all affirmed that it is never too late to correct what we've done wrong.
I remember, too, that special Sunday. You came to the church and testified about how happy you were because your dad gave you a new guitar! Your face revealed the immeasurable joy you felt inside.
Now after only a year of our journeying together, you had to go. I will never understand why. I am sad that ours was only a brief encounter. We didn't go a long way in our attempt to rediscover a life for you that is different from what you used to have. At the time when you were picking up the pieces, coming to terms with yourself, with God and with your family, just when you were learning to forgive and love yourself, just when you were enjoying your new found life in Christ. You suddenly had to go.
Goodbye Jun. We will surely miss you. I want you to know that we are sorry we couldn't ease your burden and we weren't there when you experienced your deepest hurts. We never wanted you to have lived a difficult life. It is our hope that you are ready to face our creator now that He has taken you home. We love you.
love,
Ate Mide
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Jun Monsalve was one of the members our youth ministry called Kabataang Malaya. He was once a street gang member, a group which was sometimes involved in street violence. He lived a renewed life after he came to know Christ. It was not an abrupt change of lifestyle. Yet his life was a testimony of how God can change the heart and life of a repentant man. Jun was stabbed to death by a new 'friend' in the community who didn't take possitively Jun's reprimand not to treat a common friend badly. Jun died at the age of 20 on Sept 4, 2004.
posted by Mildred | 9:23 AM
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