CUBA – April 1998
Boarding Cubana Air in the Bahamas, I was relieved to know that our trip to Cuba was backed with the prayers of many friends and family. The “skin” of the plane looked like crumpled paper. I had to duck to get through the low door to enter. Someone commented that it looked like a 1958 Chevrolet. Seats were missing backs or cushions and in some instances only the armrests were there. The buckles on the seatbelts were difficult to fasten. As the plane began to ascend, smoke started rolling down the aisle. The team leader who was across the aisle from me, assured us that it was only the condensation from the air conditioners. Before long, we knew they were working full force. I was glad I had a sweater.
Customs was quick. No bags were inspected. We were soon on our way to the hotel. Once in our rooms, we unpacked the many items we had brought along to distribute. My roommate had brought duffle bags of Hush Puppy stuffed animals. We thanked the Lord for safety and for blinded eyes!
That night as I lay awake, Psalm 91 played over in my mind… “And he shall give his angels charge over you to keep you in all your ways.” I had yet to learn how truly He had His angels watching over us!
The next morning we loaded into a taxi the bags with items for the pastor of a church. As we visited the pastor and his wife, they shared about their work, about life in Cuba in general, and about their family. We were reminded that we were visiting in a police state. This meant that nothing was secure…phone lines, emails, faxes. And that one could never be certain whom to trust. Even today, although relations with the U.S. are more favorable, recently the U.S. Dept. of State recalled non-essential personnel from the embassy due to several attacks on employees. There is also concern for the safety of U.S. citizens traveling there; and hence the travel warning.
At the end of the day, we returned to the hotel and asked for the keys to our rooms. We were informed that our rooms had been changed. At first this was rather alarming. What had happened to all of the things that my roommate and I had unpacked and left in the drawers of the dresser in our room? What about our luggage? And where were the additional gifts that the team had yet to share? The clerks at the desk assured us that everything had been transferred to our new rooms. And indeed everything was in place when we checked out our new rooms. But what did this mean? Were our new rooms bugged or under surveillance? We would certainly have to be cautious about what we discussed while in our rooms!
The next day we were on our way to visit Tarara when a policeman pulled Pastor and our team leader each over to the curb. After handing our leader a ticket for what he claimed was failure to stop at a stop sign, our leader asked him and his supervisor if they needed his State Department license to report it. Suddenly the atmosphere changed. The officer retrieved the ticket, tore it up, and with an apology sent us on our way. Once again, His angels were watching over us!
The Miracle of the Hushpuppies
We had set aside a portion of the medications we brought for Tarara, a resort turned home to Ukrainian children suffering from the effects of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in 1988. Some were not born yet when the disaster occurred, but suffered birth defects blamed on the parents’ exposure to radiation. Others were infants or young children at that time. Some of the children had orthopedic problems; others had skin issues that on some looked like brown birthmarks. Following the disaster, Russia had made arrangements with Cuba to send children there for treatment, but when Ukraine became independent, Russia washed its hands of any responsibility. There was really little that Cuban and Ukrainian doctors could do for the children, but the climate and nutritious food combined with the care the children received gave their families some hope that the children could live a normal life.
One teen was a hemophiliac. He and his mother were thrilled to see our team leader who had arranged for the young man to receive some badly needed medicine. Their gratitude knew no ends! They invited us to share a meal with them later in the week. Our team leader accepted the invitation for the team. To turn down the invitation would have been rude, although we knew that the two had barely enough to survive on themselves.
We learned that the children attended classes, yet the only supplies their teachers possessed were blackboards. The children had no school supplies.
When the children gathered for us to meet them, we began sharing the little Hushpuppy stuffed animals with them. As more and more children appeared, I became concerned that we would run out of the gifts. Then what would we do? But the team kept reaching into the bags and handing out the animals. Finally the last child had received his. I checked the duffle bags when we returned to our rooms that evening. I found only one animal left…and it was missing an eye. God had provided just enough for each child to receive a token of His love that day.
A few months later, some of us would return to visit the children, this time with school supplies. But that is another story for another day.
