the gift of hope.

Tonight I’ve been given hope.

Hope came in the form of a group of brothers and sisters we lovingly refer to as the Kai’s. There’s a bazillion of them (two sets of twins), their names all start with K’s and they all look very much alike.

Their life sucks. Their mom seems a little crazy and isn’t around much and they are often left roaming the streets. But you know what? They are the happiest and most vibrant children.

They are the kind of kids that knock on our back door with an empty baby wipe container full of snakes they need to show us. Kids who will sit on our porch swing and joke the afternoon away because they find peace here. A kid who told us that we are like their new mom and dad because I gave him a bottle of water one evening and because we listen.

There is no explanation for the way they’ve kept their joy amidst the chaos other than God has his hand on them. Protecting them from the violence and evil around them.

A couple of months ago they disappeared. This seemed very odd to me because they always worry about us up and leaving them and here they go and move without even knocking on our door to say goodbye.

I thought about them often, wondering how they are doing and praying for their safety.

Tonight, after a day spent in despair over the downward spiral of other neighbors, I answered a knock at the door.

Three smiling Kai’s greeted me with a “we’re back!” and hugs. Their mom’s boyfriend was put in jail so they spent two months relative hopping and living out of hotels but now they are staying with their grandma two streets over.

Tonight I just keep praising God for bringing them back. Just the sight of them playing in the street brings such a ray of hope and joy to this neighborhood and I didn’t realize how much I missed it until I opened the door tonight.

Welcome back Kai’s. You are loved and were missed.