The Broken Frisbee

I have mentioned the kids of Peru many many times... I think because that was the most memorable part. There was something very different about them. My assessment is that this was from the culture they live in... which is very interdependent on the family. They do everything together, and they are an active part of the family. What I mean by that is, the kids help with the cooking, cleaning, chores and many of them even work and a very young age. (There are no child labor laws there). They contribute to the home and they seem to have a higher level of maturity & responsibly then what I am used to in kids.

One day towards the end of our trip, I was out in the street playing frisbee with a bunch of kids, this was like most other days in Peru. As we tossed the frisbee around and spoke in the common language of laughter... something happened!

It was a wild throw! It went off just to my left. I swung my foot up to kick the Frisbee so that I wouldn't have to chase it down the road. I swear everything was in slow motion.... as my hiking boot made contact with the neon green frisbee.... it happened!

The frisbee SHATTERED!!! It exploded in several pieces!

The 1st thing that ran through my mind is... CRAP! I just broke their frisbee and I don't think there is a store in the area to buy another one!

As I turned apologetically to the crowd of young witnesses, I expected to be met with expressions of disappointment and anger. Instead... I was amazed! They seemed to think it was pretty funny... even kinda cool.

They all ran over and picked up pieces of frisbee and tossed them around the street!

So I said I was sorry a million times and went off with our team to do some work that day. We returned in a few hours and again, I was amazed!

The kids greeted me in the street with the same frisbee that had been repaired with layers and layers of packaging tape! They didn't care that it wasn't perfect, they just wanted to play.

I have this bizarre outlook on life sometimes... I tend to see situations and look for a lesson to pull out. With this particular one, I learned a lot about their culture. They are very content. Not only these kids, but the people in general that we met.

Here is an exaggerated comparison of a Peru kid and an American kid...

Lessons from a broken frisbee...

Here is the funny twist to the story... About half way through the trip I had left my backpack in the church. Needless to say the next day it was gone! I was ok with it because there wasn't much in it.

So I return back to the states and I get an email from Miguel, whom we stayed with in Peru. He said he found my bag under some boxes in the church, and I needed to come back to get it (they really do want us back). I asked him to look in my bag and confirm what he found... MY FRISBEE WAS IN THERE! Before I had gone to Peru I bought a brand new frisbee. So I had him present the frisbee as a gift on my behalf to the kids. God is so funny the way he seems to work things out. I don't believe in coincidences... but there are Godoincidences!

Thanks for reading... check back for more!