Deep in the heart of Lira's main hospital lives a pre-teen boy named Ivan. Entering the tuberculosis ward, Ivan resembles nothing more than a pile of bones stacked neatly up on the floor. In fact, at first glance Ivan is so small, you probably wouldn't even notice he was in the room. Ivan is now succumbing to tuberculosis, HIV, and meningitis. A two month hospital stay is all that divides him from his former life of happiness and health; of running and kicking balls, playing in the mud, and helping around the house.
His withered grandmother hoists him up onto the bed so I can get a better look at him. Ivan lost his parents to AIDS, and his grandmother now struggles to stay on top of mounting health care bills. Ivan is 12 years old, and weighs around 45 lbs. His eyes are cold, but still flicker about the room, staring off at nothing in particular. His face is swollen from his bulging brain. The nurse explains to me that before he lost his ability to speak, Ivan screamed that his face felt on fire. He coughed blood. The right side of his body went limp several days ago, and he is now paralyzed.
The truth is, meningitis is slowly eating his brain. His grandmother doesn't have the money to buy efficient treatment for Ivan, or even pain killers. Ivan's pain is not censored. The doctors speculate he still feels it all. The other truth? Much of Ivan's sickness could of been prevented if his grandmother could of afforded to pay his medical bills.
As I watch Ivan silently suffer, my mind flashes back to America's own 'rat race'. Ivan withers in pain while business men worry about their next presentation, society enjoys a hearty three meals a day, and children complain about their schoolwork.
In comparison… Think about the last time your dog was injured or sick. The family stews about the dog having to feel any pain. Now, think about Ivan. Ivan is suffering to a degree few of us could ever understand. And no one except for his grandmother seems to care. Why do our pets in America have more rights than a boy who's mind and soul are still very much alive? Congratulations, world. Our dogs have more rights than many of our own children.
I often lay awake at night here, struggling to comprehend life's dynamics. When God sat down to sketch out Ivan's life, this is certainly not what He had drawn out. Why is it that I was chosen to be born into a white collar, well-to-do family while people like Ivan have absolutely nothing? My only reasoning is that I was given so much so that I could give it away, so that I could bless others. I am not God, I don't know what He has in store. But I do know that as people who have far above what many could ever dream of, we have been given a precious responsibility to take care of the world's forgotten.
Ivan is someone who is great to me. This week, please join me in prayer for Ivan's recovery. If there was ever a 12 year old who desperately needed the rest of the world to listen, it would be now. Pray for a miracle for Ivan. Because if we don't, who else will?
