We continue to walk through this Easter season, discovering the footsteps of the Risen Lord who walks with us. Today, Mª Carmen Tomás, CLM from Seville, shares with us the life story of JJ, a true story of Easter and resurrection.
We live in a world in which migrants only find physical, political, relational barriers… It is difficult for us to look beyond what we see, what we believe, what we judge…
Today I would like to share the migration process of JJ, a 25 year old Colombian boy. He had to leave his country and came to Spain, with his hands in his pockets, fleeing situations of violence, misery, breaking ties with his family of origin without knowing when and how he could recover them.
He arrived in Madrid, and there he “had no luck”, he did not find any door, window or loophole, and as he had been a military man in his country, he went to Ukraine, to join the army, looking for a desperate solution. But the reality of the war, the destruction, the pain he saw around him, made him aware that he was risking his life and he had to leave, because the security provided by lodging and a salary (which he could send to his family) did not compensate.
So he arrives in Paris, broken, and meets three other boys (also Latin American), who like him were living on the street, without resources, without knowing the language…, and they create a new family, one of those that unite more than blood. The winter there is very hard, with very low temperatures, so they decide to come to Spain, where at least they knew the language, and end up arriving to my city, where winters are very mild, seven months ago. From the entity where I work, my colleagues from the homeless project take care of them in the street and encourage them to come in the morning for an appointment in our office. And there, little by little, with a lot of effort and perseverance on the part of my colleagues, little things are being achieved, and above all they are gradually regaining hope and illusion.
I do not want to tire you, but unfortunately the resources for homeless people are quite saturated, and it is not easy to find a place for one person, and even less for a group of four. The resource was not adequate, but it allowed them to have dinner, bed and shower. They were able to apply for street registration and medical assistance, which are the basis for access to the most basic resources.
There, other people, in their same situation, helped them to look for work in the countryside, despite how difficult it is to work when you are in an irregular administrative situation. And they did not hesitate to get up at 5 o’clock in the morning to get to the collection points for workers, as was already the case in the time of Jesus….
The relationship with the other day laborers also helped them to heal their wounds, to recover their self-esteem, … to feel that life was starting to give them a chance and to fight for it and not give up.
The cold season was coming to an end, and they had to leave the resource. During all this time we had worked with them, accompanying them in their processes. JJ was beginning to have a more regulated life, working, but without the possibility of paying the deposit to get into a room… We helped him by paying him a month’s rent, giving him the opportunity to save during that month and thus be able to continue in the room. And he succeeded.
Now he has been on his own for three months, he continues to work in the fields, he has his rented room, he has regained contact with his family, he maintains his friendship with his companions, one of whom went back to his country, but the other two are also doing well. And he keeps coming to see my colleague, to tell him how he is doing, how things are going…..
This morning I approached his table and asked him if he could tell me a story of hope and resurrection to share with you, and he told me, well look, I am going to tell you the story of JJ, who has just come out of here…..
Mª Carmen Tomás, CLM
