She's Just Like Jesus

Since moving here to the Basque Country, my children and I have had the privilege of being exposed more to disabled people and to people in dire need. The school that my kids attend has a large section of children who are mildly to severely disabled. They are in the lunchroom, and in the halls, and in the playground, right along side my kids. It has been a learning experience for my kids. We've been able to have great conversations about being thankful, being kind, and having the opportunity to extend Jesus' love. Every evening we go to the local bread shop to buy our bread. This is something that everyone does (picture Paris, France!) And every night there is a young woman (maybe 19) who sits outside of our bread shop with a little tin can. She is dressed in rags. I think she is from Romania. I know she is not begging because she is an alcoholic, or a drug addict. She is begging because this is her only way of eating. A few nights ago, I let the children each pick out a special treat-they spent a lot of time laboring (and drooling) over their sweet choices. As we gathered our goodies and left the shop, we came face to face with this girl. We had so much, she had so little. I gave Jillian some coins to give to her, but as we walked away, Simon stopped. On his own, he turned to her and handed her his own special treat. Jillian watched as the girls eyes grew big and she quickly gave thanks and took a bite. As we were walking home (and I praised my boy!) Simon kept remarking on how good that made him feel. We decided we wanted to continue to experience this joy, so each time we buy bread for our family, we will buy a loaf for her.
I can't help but be reminded of something Jesus said: "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me." Matthew 25:40