The Women Behind the Red Shirts

Every day at 7am and 7pm, the nanny shift changes.  If you happen to be looking out the window during that time, you will see a mass brigade of scooters entering and exiting our facility.  All of the nannies change into their uniforms as soon as they arrive and change into their street clothes before leaving.  Watching them leave always makes me smile because I get to see their style, their personality, and their high heels! It reminds me that they do indeed have lives outside of this big blue house.

The other night, Mariah and I speng a long time looking out the window.  We were chuckling as we watched the mass nanny departure.  Then our eyes drifted over the nearby dumpsters.  One of the nanny's on Mariah's floor is also the trash lady.  Tears filled both of our eyes and Mariah told me her story.  In 2009, this woman's husband passed away unexpectedly.  She came home from work that day and he had a headache.  Six hours later, he was gone.  This woman works here all day.  She holds and cares for the sickest children in the building.  Then she gets off  and transitions to being the trash lady.  She sifts through the bags of trash and sorts the recyclable from the non-recyclable and maybe keeps a few treasures for herself.  She loads all the bags into the back of her motorized tricycle and drives it to the dump.  Then she returns home to be Mama to her two girls and Caretaker to her elderly in-laws.  Mariah said she is so grateful for that second job...its her means of survival.

My heart wept as we watched her open each bag.  It made me realize that the women behind those red shirts are real people.  They take care of our babies--yes, but they have babies at home, too.  They are a part of our big family, but they have families and responsibilities outside of this place, too.  I haven't given enough credit to the women behind the red shirts.  Hearing the "trash lady's" story hit my heart in a new way and confirmed an old truth.  We are all hurting people.  Sin has ravished this world and invades the most intimate areas of our lives.  We all feel pain, joy, loss, and happiness.  We all get tired and overwhelmed.  We are all capable of the gravest of sin, and good intentions don't always take us as far as we'd hoped.  We are all in need of a gracious, loving, and forgiving Savior.  We are all desperate and without hope without Him.  And His invitation is for us all. 

He loves the babies in this big blue building.  They are precious in His sight.  But He also loves the women that care for these children day in and day out.  I pray that they feel, know, and understand His love by being here.