On Thursday on our trip to the Dominican Republic, we visited an urban slum in downtown Santo Domingo. What we saw and experienced was shocking–and yet heart-warming.
{I wish I could have taken my camera to capture the scenes for you, but we’d decided to leave it behind as it was a somewhat dangerous situation for Americans to go into these slums. We found out later that one of the men who showed up while we were visiting was actually one of the city’s most dangerous criminals–a man who has an alliance with the police and therefore never gets punished for any of his deeds because he just pays them money to overlook his criminal actions. Our guide was incredibly grateful that I hadn’t brought the camera as he felt there was a good chance it would have put us in a great deal of danger!}
To even reach where the people lived, you had to go through this very small and long concrete corridor in between two stores. At the back, we ducked under laundry hanging out and entered a concrete broken down dwelling that looked like it hadn’t seen anything clean in decades. It reeked of years’ worth of dirty laundry piles mixed with sweat.
Inside this smelly, dirty, concrete dwelling was a beautiful woman. To most people, she wouldn’t appear all that beautiful from the outside. Her teeth were mostly missing and what was left of them were rotted and brown. Her hair looked like it hadn’t been washed in a very long time. Her clothes were dirty, extremely worn out, and stained.
But she was a beautiful woman regardless of her outward appearances because she radiated with contentment. Her living conditions were appalling. She was in charge of caring for some of her grandchildren because her daughter has been sick for years. Her son is a high profile criminal. And she is unable to find work and relies on the kindness of others for support.
Despite all her struggles, she was so joyful. Instead of giving in to hopelessness and despair, she was telling us how she’s trying to reach out and help others.
And then, she asked if she could pray for us. I was moved to tears.
Here was this woman who has practically nothing and she’s asking to pray for us!
I wish you could have heard her prayer. It was powerful and filled with praise to the Lord, thanking Him for bringing us to visit her and asking that God would bless us.
After we gave her a box of staple supplies and prayed for her, I hugged her and thanked her profusely for letting us come. While we came to reach out to her, we left the ones who were ministered to.
If she can be joyful, content, and giving in such an awful situation in life, I have no excuse to ever complain again.
{This picture is of one of the other families we visited on our trip. All six of them live in this house and it wasn’t much bigger than what you see here. I was so impressed with the girl on the left. She had so much drive and potential: she’s working at the supermarket and going to the university to study accounting and hoping to get a job in the accounting field once she graduates.}
Christine says
Your experience echoes a huge kingdom lesson experienced by Peter in Acts! The cultural differences between you and this woman were reduced to dust because of your shared faith. Wow! Wow! Wow!
In Acts the Holy Spirit, made it clear to Peter that ethnocentricity was not acceptable, that Gentiles were to hear the good news without any implied inferiority (race, religion, economical status, gender, etc).
Stephanie says
I had contentment on my heart all day and this confirmed my need for more of it in my life. Thanks for the post!
Adrian @ Life Before the Bucket says
I hope your time in the DR really shifts your worldview and opens you up even further to caring for the poor – it’s something I think you’re well-equipped to do, especially with the influence you have through the platform of your blog. =)
liz says
This reminds me of time I spent in India. It has been my experience that people with very little are the first to share what they have!
icoupon says
Wow. Truly humbling and inspiring. Kudos to you for your all your work.
Michelle says
Thanks for sharing. Sometimes I want to complain about the fact that we are expecting our 5th child and only have a two bedroom house, but its people like those you mentioned that always come to mind. Even the house I grew up in was much smaller than what we have now. People have lived in small spaces for years… so can I.
Suzanne says
Wow Crystal, thank you! What an appropriate post. Especially considering the genre of your posts. We all come to your site to not only see what new great bargains are posted in order to save be wise spenders of what the Lord has provided but I for one, greatly enjoy and benefit from your do it yourself posts, encouragement posts, and perspective builder posts. This tops them all as its the greatest perspective builder in light of all the money we do have and are saving. Here is this woman without any of this and in a great deal of poverty and danger and she is so content and in touch with her Saviour. Sometimes what we have can be our greatest hindrance!
jess says
Thankful and overwhelmed with what I have after reading this post and these comments. Thank you for sharing.
Leah says
So very true! We get caught up in our world and forget to put the right perspective on things. I will have more grace for my cranky toddler tomorrow. God bless and safe travels!
Wendy Jahns says
Tears here Crystal, I was moved by the story. This is why I’m thankful everyday for what God provides to our family. I’m from Guatemala, and have seen very similar situations there too. It gets on my nerves when I hear people here in the US complaining about the little that they have, even when they eat rice and beans! In Guatemala, there are families that have to feed their kids with corn tortillas and salt because they cannot even afford rice or beans, very sad. Also, kids that probably have only 1 toy for years and they have to use their imagination with only a single toy. Thanks for sharing all your adventures with us, I hope your book keeps selling even more!
August says
My mother-in-law just got back from Haiti and said that the conditions were utterly horrid. She witnessed a woman get ran over by one of the tanks and no one did anything. Life just continued as if nothing had happened. She also said that there was a woman that had sever burns and a condition where her uterus (or something like that) hung out of her body. She needed immediate medical attention, but no one could afford to take her the 5 miles to the hospital. Apparently there were no ambulances so she would have to ride on the back of a motorcycle. The cost? Was only $10 to save her life. Thankfully my mother-in-law was there to give themt the money. They almost didn’t go because it was such a long walk, but felt the need to be there, so they continued. I hope to do something like that with my life one day.
Stefanie says
Gosh, that’s humbling. I needed a reminder like this. It’s often easy to forget how lucky we truly have it. Even the poor in this country have it so much better than most in some countries.
Kathy says
Is it just me or do the deal posts not seem as enticing after reading about the conditions in the DR?
Christal Beyer says
Wow!! Crystal, thanks for sharing this story!
Sharise says
This last picture you posted with the family of 6. Were these children part of the Compassion program? I ask because the little boy looks just like the boy we sponsor from the DR. I kept trying to make the photo larger so I could tell if for sure it was him. Our “child’s ” name is Wilson, I would love to find out if that was him (or not) but something in my heart tells me it’s him. Blessings to you and your family.
Crystal says
I’m not 100% sure whether the boy was part of the program as he was really shy and stood outside the door most of the time. I know both of the girls were as we spent time with them when we visited the project earlier that day: https://moneysavingmom.com/2012/03/we-all-have-something-to-give-even-if-it-doesnt-seem-like-much.html
Do you know what part of the DR he lives in or anything specific about his family? I could probably figure it out for sure if you knew more details. Feel free to email me. That would be SO cool if it was him!!
Julie says
Thank you for sharing and processing your trip with us. I do hope you’ll write a post that details some of the ways you are sharing with your children!
Crystal says
I’m going to do a post later this week–hopefully!–with more details on the outreach of the CSP we visited that we’re funding with the proceeds from the book. It was so thrilling, humbling, and just plain overwhelming to visit there… still processing all of that part of the trip and hope to be ready to share about it soon!
Kim@GoingThrifty says
Take the time to process it, Crystal. Becoming “wrecked” and overlapping your life with what you have just seen and experienced has GREAT purpose.
Crystal @ Blissful Homemaking says
Thank you for this post. You have really inspired me to sponsor a child. I am in the process of figuring it all out. I have Googled a lot of information about the Dominican Republic also to learn more. It saddens me to hear about the living conditions. 🙁
Kim@GoingThrifty says
We brought home a little girl from Africa this last year and while there we visited the lowest of the low…the outcast/leper/hiv+ community that lives and works in the dump. They invited us into their “homes” . They were so happy and content. As I came out of one (honestly to get some fresh air) I saw a girl about 7 or 8 yrs old who had scratched out their version of hop scotch in the dirt. A few boys came running in from the trash piles excited to show us they had found some unopened creamers from the airline’s trash. They mixed it with “water” and made milk. Very humbling! Their smiles were huge. We ARE blessed here in the US but I honestly don’t think it is for ourselves. It think it is to give…and in giving, we receive.
So glad you were able to take this trip.
Erin @ My Mommy World says
This reminds me of something I read this morning in Calm My Anxious Heart…the author quoted a friend from Poland who said that Western women have so many things that they don’t need God. It makes me feel ashamed to look around my house and see all the clutter I need to clear out…all that stuff we just wasted good money on and here is this woman in such poverty and she is happier and more content than I am. It’s really inspiring. Thanks for sharing 🙂
Beverly says
Thank you so much for sharing. You’re story brought me to tears. I have my own difficulties, and can still not say no to the firemen, breast cancer people, or other needy. Though it might put me in a little jeapardy, i feel so much better now that you have shared this. I need so much less than others, and that in itself makes me feel blessed through all of this! Thanks so much!
Doretta says
A wise man once told me that the reason we struggle with discontentment is because we choose to compare ourselves with those who have MORE than we have. Comparing ourselves with those who have LESS makes a profound difference in the way we live our lives.
Ingrid says
I love that you had this experience and that you are sharing it with others. I am convinced that 49% of why God asks us to care for the poor is for their benefit and the other 51% is about our hearts. He wants to change us, we have SO much to learn and those in need have much to teach us. I love James 1:27 – care for orphans and widows – 49% and keep yourself from being polluted by the world – 51%, we are polluted when we give in to materialism and are discontent with what God has given us. We are to care for those in need for our own benefit as much as theirs!
Eden says
I agree! My family adopted two children from Africa (www.safelytoarriveathome.blogspot.com) and when my dad got home, he told us all about the poverty he saw around him! He could just look out of his hotel window and see shacks made out of sheet metal….TONS of shacks! He took pictures and showed them to us….. awful! We are so blessed here in the US!
Angi @ schneiderpeeps says
Thanks for this post. This past year we’ve become friends with a family that moved here from Kenya last summer. It has been such an eye opening friendship and has helped me be so much more content. I think it’s hard to be content when we live in a culture of such abundance. I’m reminded over and over that contentment is a spiritual issue, not a financial issue.
Liz @ The Hesitant Housewife says
Thank you for sharing! Such a wonderful reminder. This story moved me to tears. God Bless you for going and mistering to all these beautiful brothers and sisters in Christ!
Diane says
Thank you for sharing, wow what a perspective. And I complain that our house has just one bathroom. 🙁
Brandy says
What an awesome post, Crystal. Thank you so much for sharing!
Amanda says
WOW! Thank you for telling this story. To hear how content that woman is can really bring others down to earth. Just yesterday I was very frustrated that our 2nd child is on the way and we are not going to be able to move out of our 2 bedroom duplex that is rundown and a landlord who doesn’t do much to fix it, nor care too. And he’s a relative! My daughter and stepson already share a room and I’m not sure they would sleep well with a baby. I let myself throw a pity party and then started making plans of making a makeshift room for the baby in our large living room. We should be able to move before the baby reaches 6 months. I had to tell myself that I have more than what others do and some would dream of living in my rundown place. Reading this just reaffirmed to me that I need to be thankful and put my energies into budgeting and getting to our house and less energy on being whiny. Your page truly is an inspiration in so many ways and on so many different levels of my life! THANK you for sharing!
Laurie G says
No shame in the baby sleeping in the living room. We did it with our fourth child. Her crib was there and that was her “room” for almost a year. She didn’t care and neither did we. We have 6 people living in a 1000 square foot house, so you have to get creative. : )
Meredith says
So I’ve been complaining all day that my husband took a new job that has different hours. Wow, I feel different now. Thank you so much for submitting….I needed this.
Frugal Jen | Frugal, Freebies and Deals says
My hubby and I went to Guatemala.. several years ago.. it’s shocking..even the very nice areas are considerably poorer than what we have here. I remember coming back home and feeling carpet under my feet and it feeling so strange.
You definitely come away from experiences like this with a new perspective 🙂
jenetta
Jan says
Something like this is on my bucket list. My brother went to Guatemala on a missions trip and the photos and stories he brought back moved me & gave me the burden to do the same one day. I know it will be the most amazing life experience ever. Even though times are financially difficult for my family, we have so very very much that we don’t need and so little to complain about when measured against the extreme poverty that others live in.
I am really enjoying this series of posts and hope there are a lot more to come!
ZombiemommySaves says
Wow thanks for sharing. I told my kids the other day that they there were going to get to be missionaries one day so they could be more grateful for what they have.
Brandi says
What an amazing story filled with so much inspiration!! You have a special talent of knowing when people need some inspiration. Thank you so much!!
Lisa-panaMOM says
The daily reminder of how easy my “difficulties” are is the greatest blessing of living in Panama! I’m so glad you were touch by your time in the DR!
J says
Oh how wonderful and humbling! What a dear sweet person, such a great blessing to be able to meet her and speak with her. Heart speech…if I have ever heard it.
Paula B says
I am so moved by your story. I pinned it to my Pinterest board. I went to Honduras in 2006. Right before the big financial bust. The worst of my problems couldn’t begin to compare with what people in the 3rd World live with every day…and yet, as you say, they are content and happy. No infomercial can give what they have.