By Anna Fisher
The clothes blew in the wind, and debris collected in the corners. In the center of the apartment complex was a grass-less play area where children were drawing in the dirt and chatting to themselves in a language I couldn’t understand. I used the scarf wrapped around my neck to dab the sweat from my face. It was a hot day in Texas, and my classmate and I were passing out cards to refugees and immigrants. The cards advertised a website with resources and content in hundreds of languages. These people were predominantly Afghan, and I was excited to meet and welcome them to a new land. Three little sisters latched onto us - girls with long black hair and matching shirts. They translated for us at every door—explaining in Farsi what I was incapable of saying to the people we met.
I remember hearing about the situation in Afghanistan and thinking, “what on earth can I do? I am a young girl in school, and there is no way I can go over there, but I wish I could do something.” My heart ached for them. Later came mission week and with it an opportunity to serve people from Afghanistan. Here were people who were displaced from their native land and families and put in a dingy place of a home. They didn’t know anybody, and the women didn’t even know English. The little girls that translated for us told us about how there were “men who would shoot anybody, even little babies.” They explained to us how their uncle had been killed because he was a pilot. I stood mind blown as they were telling us this, not knowing what to say. I wanted to hug them and tell them that I was so glad they were safe. I sent a prayer heavenward and asked God to help me show love to these people who had faced the horrors of war and evil far more than I ever wanted to imagine.
I realized that by serving these people in the apartments, I was actually doing what I thought was impossible. They had come to my native land stripped of dreams and belongings. These were the people whom I thought I would never see. I thought I could do nothing to help, yet they were just a knock away behind a door. Through this experience, God showed me that I can find my life through service to others and that a smile can speak when words fail.