David and Doris Nichols
February 2008
The Little Girl and Her Trash
While walking to the office this morning, as I turned into a small alley (which leads to our office through a squatter community) and was trudging up the hill, I noticed at the top, a little girl about 8, coming down, carrying in front of her, a large cardboard box full of garbage, taking it to the daily, ever-growing pile of garbage, at the bottom of the road. A man dressed in ragged clothes, battered flip flops, and pushing a wooden cart full of fruit was in front of me, huffing and puffing as he forced his cart up the wet, slick and filthy path. Suddenly, the girl’s garbage spilled out of the bottom of the box, flying everywhere. Ignoring the mess, the man with the cart pushed past her. The little girl re-adjusted the box, set it on the ground, and bent down to scoop up the garbage with her bare hands. Although I was dressed for the office in a long skirt and top, when I reached the little girl, I bent down, and without saying anything, began using my bare hands to gather up the garbage too…household food scraps, muddy leaves, rotting boards, empty biscuit packages, a dirty disposable diaper. Together we put it in the cardboard box. Looking startled, she hesitantly glanced up at me, “Thank you, po” (mam) she whispered. “Walang anuman” (your welcome), I quietly replied, and kept scooping up trash. Finally she closed the box, said “Salamat po” (thank you mam) again, and I walked on, my hands filthy, dripping mud and goo. As I passed the man with the cart, who was squatting down next to the cart where he had stopped, just a few meters beyond us, at the top of the hill, he looked up at me and said “dirty!” . . . I just smiled and made my way to the office, with my dirty hands.
People still ask David and I what do we actually do as the PRM (Personnel Resource Managers), stuck up in a tiny corner office in our OMF Manila Center, just off the 20 lane, Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City. Well, we all are still trying to figure that out. But if you think of Andy, as Deputy Field Director as the head, Theo as National Administrator as the brains, perhaps we could be considered the hands of OMF Philippines.
Typing Hands: Most days, our hands are found typing on the computer. Processing inquiries from homeside countries about candidates or those going on home assignment, keeping track of personnel data, sending out announcements, and responding to emails consume much of each day. Our favorite part? Receiving emails from the field members that let us know how everyone is really doing and how we can pray for them.
Supporting Hands: For those in the Manila area, such as those teaching at Faith Academy or the seminaries, or for those working closely with a church or other organization but not on a “team”, we are the “supervisors”. We try to provide support and encouragement, and a listening ear for these 45+ missionaries and their families, and represent them on Admin Council. The best way to do this is by a personal visit, but as you can imagine, trying to see several dozens of people each month while traveling across Manila with 17 million other people can be a harrowing challenge.
Helping Hands: In addition, for the entire OMF Philippines field (about 130 missionaries), we are responsible for making sure that everyone is receiving adequate member care—pastoral care, language and orientation support, etc. When we hear about a seminar, or read about a resource that may be helpful, we send the information on to the field. We are not only available to hear about concerns and suggestions in return; we want to do so—via email, text, phone calls or a visit. Members looking for a safe place? We are here to listen and try to get around to each of our major areas of ministry once a quarter.
Praying Hands: Finally, it is a joy and a privilege to pray regularly for our OMF Philippines missionary team. One day each week, we pray for the personal and ministry needs of each missionary family. When there is a specific need, we pray with and for our members and try, when possible, to pray in on the phone or in person! Receiving our member’s prayer letters, whether they are under our supervision or not, is a great way to help us to pray for specific needs.
As Doris said to our field members in a letter this week after writing about her story above, “We hope to be there for you, the next time you need us, to get our hands dirty…with pleasure.”
“Take my life and let it be
Consecrated, Lord, to Thee;
Take my hands and let them move,
At the impulse of Thy love,
At the impulse of Thy love.
”Frances R. Havergal
