Shoe Shine?

For anyone thinking of traveling in Antigua be prepared for a different kind of salesmen. Anyone who wears shoes in Antigua are approached by hoards of young boys (all probably under 15 years old) asking if they can “shoe shine” your shoes. A well dressed boy of 14 is among the many young boys trying to make a living. Marc Antonio and his younger brother are sent out to shoe shine daily to provide money for the family. They are told by their parents to not come home until their quota is met.
The other day in Antigua Marc came into the restaurant BJ and I were eating at and asked BJ if he could shine his shoes. BJ told the boy he had met him before in a previous trip to Guatemala. The boy barely nodded probably thinking that he was not going to get anything from us. Knowing this boys story & wanting to talk more BJ agreed to the boy’s offer to shoe shine. The price for a shoe shine is 10Q ($1.25US) & as I watched this boy work on BJ’s shoes I prayed that our money would make the quota he needed & that he would be able to go home. As BJ continued to talk to him in Spanish I just looked at this boy. Here he was washing one of the dirtiest parts of a person- their shoes. I thought about all the sewage water & animal poop BJ & I tried to step over as we walked through different parts of Guatemala. Was this boy affected by the debris & clumps of sewage, gum, & whatever else on BJ’s shoes? Did the fact that he was on his knees or sitting at the feet of men (AND cleaning them) all day long make him feel insignificant?
The cliché “What Would Jesus Do” keeps reverberating in my mind as I write this blog. Would this boy know who Jesus was or would he just walk up to him & ask if he wanted his shoes shined for 10Q? What would Jesus say to this boy? What could I say to this boy? Could I tell him Jesus loved him? But then how does one explain love especially when parents should be the main attribute of showing love & they are the ones telling him to not come home until he has enough money? How can you explain or articulate, in the capacity that he would understand, that God loved him so much that He gave His life for Marc’s sins? As I sat in my seat my mind ran in thousands of directions trying to feel what this boy was going through and trying to figure out what I could say to him that would in some way build him up & possibly witness to him. This was one of the hardest things for me because as I sat there nothing came to mind. I didn’t know what to say to him or how to articulate to him (in a non-cheesy way- to feel my sincerity) I want him to shine shoes for Christ. I want him to feel as clean and bright as he makes BJ’s shoes. We added a couple extra coins to what he charged us for & as he walked away (disappointed that nothing came to mind for me to say) all I could do was pray for him.
I felt as if I missed an opportunity to build up someone else…but knew God is sovereign and knows who Marc is and what he needs. He will provide in His timing and His own way, perhaps by the time I learn Spanish I'll have the words to say and know how to even speak them in his language. :)