Luisa's History

Lusia was born in Inhaban on 20th of May 1995.
I lived with my mother and father. My father did not like me but my mother loved me very much. She died when I was 4. Banditos came and robbed the house while I was sleeping and mother was out. She woke me up and told me that we needed to go to grandmothers the next day. That night the robbers came back. In that area the people didn’t like my mom. When my father brought things they would be stolen. The next night after the robbery the banditos came back again. They killed my mom. I didn’t hear anything because I was sleeping. They put capalana (a piece of cloth) in her mouth to keep her quiet. They put nails in her neck. When I woke up in the morning I thought she was sleeping. I went to play and a neighbor asked about my mom and went in and found her dead. Auntie phoned the father. He came and cried. They brought me to a neighbor and I stayed there for a day. They called the police and they looked at the house and didn’t find anything. All the family came to the house. The neighbor’s big daughter took me walking around. I couldn’t speak. My uncle (mom’s brother) came and cried. He knew who did it. Many people cane to just look but not to help. The neighbors left. They took my mom to the hospital; they never found them men who killed her. I think it was witchcraft.
After the funeral my father took me to my mother’s sister. She died just a few days later. She wasn’t even sick. A neighbor there tried to kill me through poison. One day I ate their food and I started to be crazy. My uncle took me to the hospital. I drank medicine and I vomited. Another uncle from SA came and was upset that no one called him to tell him about his sister’s death. He promised to take me to go live with him in SA. Grandma came to take me to live with her. She brought me to beira at night while I slept. When I woke up I was in beira at the house of my grandma. My real grandfather was died while I was there. They wanted to bury me and my grandmother with him. I started to cry. When I cried no one looked at me. My sister in-law came and took me to her house. I stayed with her then my grandma came and took me to manyahava. She married another man. He didn’t like me. When they had something missing he beat me. A neighbor took me to her house and rebuked my grandmother. I stayed at the neighbors house and saw grandma and her husband fighting. One day a friend came to play. My grandma called me and talked to me. She told me to not let her husband beat me. I started to cry. She looked for an orphanage to take me to. She put me in the orphanage that was eventually shut down because it was not right. I stayed there. I was the first one to come there. Then they started to bring other orphans.
That orphanage if you provoke someone they beat you. When people gave food to us that pastor took it to his own house. She saw Mama Lee there when she visited and hoped that she would be able to go live with that white woman.
That place was not good for me. There was no love there, no peace. Everyday someone would tell us to do this and that but they would not do anything to help us; lots of work in the garden. We never got to eat that rice. I was hungry a lot. They fed us bad fish with sheema, (cooked ground maze) no sauce. If someone was sick they wouldn’t take you to the hospital. Someone would come to give medicine. Other missionaries would sometimes come take us to the beach. We would eat chicken and have cokes.
Then Social Services came. They asked who had family. I was still a close distance to grandma. They told me I must leave. I walked back to my grandma’s house. My grandma asked why I came. A neighbor came to check on me everyday. She took me to her house to stay there 2 days. She worked for some catholic missionaries. One day they came to get me to live with mama.
What did you think when you came to my house?
First day I was a little bit afraid because I never stayed with white before. You took me and gave me a bath. And some clothes. When I stay one week I begin to like it. I started to play with the light switches. I never saw a flushing toilet so I played with that too. I was happy to see Julia again, she played too much with me at the other orphanage. At first she was afraid to be with the boys again because bad things happened to her at the other orphanage because of them. But mama protected her and helped them to learn a better way.
When I am just here at HoB I get sad that I don’t have family to visit.

Mama’s thoughts…
At the time Lusia came to HoB I had 12 orphans. That was the number I committed to care for in the contract with SS. I, not being aware of the lax laws in Moz, was not able to take anymore, however those missionaries pressed and we had a meeting with the director of SS to discuss taking more. In the meeting I felt bound to the contract but they were discussing what they could do with these children. I wanted to take them but obey the law too. I leaned over to Filip and whispered, “We need to hear from God.” As I turned my head away from him I heard the voice of God in my heart say, “I am fighting for them.” Then the conversation started to change and before I knew it I was taking on 3 more orphans. Lusia came with 2 others from that orphanage, Teresa and her little brother Vasco.
Lusia is a very gentle, sensitive person, very small in stature and quite immature. She has deep compassion for others and animals. She is the one that cares for our guard dog. She was badly abuse by the boys at the other orphanage but the Lord has touched her and healed what she has let Him heal.
When she grows up she wants to have her own orphanage and care for little ones. She is always watching out for the younger ones at HoB and I can see her growing into a wonderful caretaker of orphans.

Lord, You know the hopes of the helpless. Surely you will hear their cries and comfort them. You will bring justice to the orphans and the oppressed, so mere people can no longer terrify them. Psalm 10:17&18
The Lord replies, “I have seen violence done to the helpless, and I have heard the groans of the poor. Now I will rise up to rescue them, as they have longed for me to do.” Psalm 12:5
THERE IS MUCH MORE TO LUISA'S STORY NOW...

Here’s a story that will warm your heart.

Luisa has been with us at HoB for 8 years. Early on we were in contact with her grandmother but we lost touch with her and she was the only connection with her family. Every year as children went to visit family during the holidays her and Martina were left with mama. I tried to make it up but really, having family connections is very important here. Last year when Martina found her family we felt the great longing Luisa had in her heart to find hers.

Then one day Dauce was out and about and ran into her grandmother. He remembered her from when they were in another orphanage many years ago. From that meeting came the knowledge of a little sister she never knew she had, just 1 year younger than her. They had been separated because the mother was not well. Knowing that she had a sister was exciting but finding her became a challenge. She was so rebellious that her family lost track of her. She was just 14 and out on her own subjected to the dark elements of city life. We kept having hope. Luisa started meeting this aunt and that one, this uncle and that one but still no sister. This went on for about 3 months, through the holidays. It was heart wrenching but we kept praying and never gave up hope.

About 2 weeks ago we got a call from an aunt who was visiting from South Africa. She wanted to meet Luisa so I drove her there. I had a strong desire to meet this lady. She stood in the door looking very distinguished and beautiful. She spoke English well enough for us to greet each other and have simple chat. Then she invited us to come around the side of the house. Her father (Luisa’s Grandfather) was there and next to him was a young girl sitting on the ground looking just like Luisa. The moment should have been recorded. How can I describe in words what happened? The looks, the embrace, the tears... It was a moment etched in my memory that I will never forget; sweet soft Luisa embracing Fatima, a stiff hardened look-alike.                                

Luisa stayed about 1 ½ weeks with them and then her aunt went back to SA. The other aunt is not able to care for Fatima so, well... She is with us now. We just got her settled in. She loves it here. I was worried about the influence she might have but she is so determined to live that she has embraced us. Tonight she was leading all the little ones in games. The transformation so far is really beautiful. I had a chat with her about how God feels about her and how she could respond to him and she is so wide open. It was like she had been waiting in line and now it was her turn. She was ready. She is so funny too, so full of joy, unlike when I first saw her. She has a lot of catching up to do. A lot of healing love to absorb. This one was lost and now she is found.