Blood on his hands

I glanced out the window and saw it unfolding.  Two of the smaller boys were hitting each other during morning devotions. Then one had a stick, then the other one had a bloody nose.  I opened the front door right as the teacher arrived with the bloody nose kid (Andres), trailed by the kid who no longer had a stick in his hands (Juan)*.

I gave them both a stern(ish) talking to as I took out the First Aid supplies (you can only do so much when a child is looking at you through tears with blood on his face). We only had cotton swabs available, so I pulled out a new roll of toilet paper and held some to Andres' face.  Then I saw that his little hand was completely covered in blood from his nose.

"Will you cure me?" It's a question I've grown accustomed to hearing when the kids need First Aid care.  I have often told the kids that if they continue pulling stunts like some they pull, they will be in charge of curing each other when things go wrong.

I finally put that into practice a few weeks ago, when Juan's brother came to me with an injury on his hand and I found out that it was a result of Juan hitting him with a board.  I called Juan out of class and had him "cure" his brother.  As he tentatively applied the rubbing alcohol, and his brother writhed in laughter and pain, I saw a look of great concern and focus on Juan's face.  He took curing his brother quite seriously.

And he took this new task very seriously as well.  As I held toilet paper to Andres' nose, Juan methodically washed the blood off of Andres' hand - returning to the bathroom again and again to get more toilet paper wet.  He did it with great care and gentleness.

After a while, I asked Juan if he had anything he'd like to say to Andres.  He quietly asked Andres to forgive him.  Andres didn't really respond.  After another few minutes, I asked Andres if he had a response for Juan.  He didn't say anything, but stood up and gave Juan a hug. So sweet.

I don't know that this method will always work, but I am thankful for the times that it has.  Hopefully Juan will eventually put it together that having sticks in his hands does not turn out well.  Meanwhile, I am thankful for the pure hearts of the kids we have here.  Many of them have already experienced hellish things on this earth - hopefully we can help bring more of the kingdom of heaven to their lives.

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"...do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you."

Ephesians 4:29-32 

*Names have been changed for privacy of the individuals.