The Story of Buhle and Thuli

The Story of Buhle and Thuli

 

Buhle is a domestic worker with four grown children and six grandchildren. She has raised her children for the latter part of their childhoods as a single parent and also been the mother to several of her nieces and nephews. Buhle has always had at least four but usually five or six children in her care at any one time. She even put a nephew through nursing training.

 In spite of Buhle’s relatively low income as a domestic worker and the ever increasing cost of living, she has a desire to give and care. She is passionate about children and is dubbed in her community as a “social worker” for her ability and desire to help those in need. At one point this included taking in three children who were orphaned. Buhle expressed her desire to care for a child in need of a family this Christmas. The staff at the Mpophomeni Family Centre were contacted and they identified Thuli, a fifteen year old girl. Thuli’s mom died many years ago, she has an aunt who works away from Mpophomeni and returns once a month. She also has a grandmother who lives in Mpophomeni but who is constantly verbally abusive to her. Thuli is, by all accounts of MFC staff, a responsible, bright and pleasant girl. She has a family, but there is very little love and affection shown.

Thuli spent two weeks with Buhle and her family, all of whom embraced her with love and care. All that belong to Buhle’s family was shared openly with Thuli as well. The visit went so well that Buhle and Thuli have started making plans for the next school holidays…!!

The challenge in this story for me is Buhle opened her heart and home not out of her abundance of resources, but in spite of her lack of resources. Her faith that there is always enough for one more. I am challenged by this faith. I want to live 2013 not afraid to give in case I don’t have enough, but to give freely knowing that God is my Father and He has more than enough. Time, food, money, emotional energy, relationships… God has all of these for us in abundance, we can never out give God!