Our Angel Joins High School At Last

On February 22, 2020 I shared how I walked beside an angel. Here's what has happened since then.

As we were just about to exit prison today, I remembered the angel I had walked besides, a couple of weeks ago. For some reasons that I can't explain, I stretched out my right hand and grasped his receptive left hand. As we walked, side by side, I told him that God was in full control.

Though we were late for Form One intake, I reassured him that God would enable him to go to school in a week's time or next year. We just had to hope, pray and accept His perfect will.

In November last year, we drive him home and listened as his grandma abandoned him. Time and time again, his dad transferred his parental responsibilities to us. His sister, regained hope that her brother could change after we reassured her that our family was going to be his guardians.

When we arrived at Cafasso today, the angel smiled when he saw us. It's been about 3 or so weeks since we last saw each other. He was eating lunch, together with the gathered guests, volunteers and staff at the consolation house.

"Thanks for coming," the staff member who knows us welcomed us. "I have good news for you. Your boy is going to join Form One this coming Tuesday. Sister Getrude approved his request."

"What?" I whispered, unable to do anything else but mumble. "How do you feel?" I asked the angel, when I eventually regained my voice.

The boy I called an angel stopped chewing his food, he placed his plate on the table and walked out of the room. When he came back, I was finding it hard to hold back my tears. But no tears fell from my eyes, because I have lost most of them in the past, especially during the dark days (July 2012 - 2016) when God was preparing me for prison ministry.

"Whenever things fail to work," I said, "it takes little pieces from us. But when one boy stays on his chosen path of becoming a better man, he helps us to recollect the scattered pieces and our hearts are filled with joy. Thank you for giving us hope and the fuel to rescue another boy from the pits of prison!"

Keith Ngao's Visit

A few minutes before coming to Cafasso, Keith Shieldz had finished speaking to our exceptional young men about his life experiences and how to set up a personal financial plan. It was a topic that each of the boys had enjoyed.

However, like the many sessions before it, a new wave of low was just about to hit. Hard. It turns out that two of our boys are fed up with the system and are entertaining suicidal thoughts, having attended numerous court cases without their families, lawyers and complainants turning up in court.

As we walked out, one of them held my hand and told me, "Teacher James, I want to talk to you."

"I'm listening," I replied.

"I'm fed up with life and you're the only person I can trust because Lifesong KENYA has been there for me during my time of need."

"Okay, let me see if I can come tomorrow," I said. "Bye for now."

Just before deciding to pass by Cafasso, my heart was heavy with grief. As a result, I needed a piece of good news to lift my spirits. Little did I know that God was leading us to Cafasso so we could learn that our boy will be going to school earlier than anticipated.

Suddenly, the news lifted the heavy weight from off my shoulders. All the hard work, the waiting, attending court, talking to parents, meet in police officers and the people who have been wronged and hurt proved to be worth it when I heard that the angel will be going to school this coming week.

While his family has lost faith and hope that he can change, I am convinced that there is a girl somewhere who will be glad (in the future) that we took a chance, believed and did all we can to help him become a better man. She may call him babe, but to me, it will always sound as 'angel.'

In the meantime, there is work to be done and one more exceptional young man to rescue.