Finally an update.

There he is. Just another man standing in-front of one of the countless grocery stores, the innumerable kiosks and Doner shops. Just part of the scenery, receding almost into the façade of Berlin, just another face, another life that we pass by each day. And yet, one wonders. What’s going on behind that face? What kind of life is that of just standing there all day, with the alcoholic beverage of preference in ones hand, the whole, long day? What choices were made, what circumstances pushed this man to just stand, drink, sell smuggled cigarettes. One wonders; I wonder!

He seems to be faithful representation of the inner struggle of Berlin, making visible what goes on beyond many closed doors, and shut windows: solitude, idleness, hopelessness and alcohol. It is that particular characteristic of these old Soviet style buildings that although painted yellow and bright they appear grey, a scenery that in an ironic twist on Marx seems underscores the alienation from life, from hope, from others, from God I feel when one encounters people, when one looks into their eyes and sees what they are so desperately trying to hide. But why care? Don’t people pass us by everyday? They are just somebody, anybody!! I have my own problems to deal with.

And then there’s Daniel, who lives alone with his mom. He is 12 years old, a 6th grader. His mom comes home from work at 10 P.M. He spends his afternoon in-front of his TV. Don’t even bother consulting the T.V. Guide, he knows what is playing on his favourite channels at what times, down to the exact minute. It’s all planned out, and yet, after meeting us once he comes to hang out on construction in the afternoon. As I start talking to him, I notice that he does funny things, is always on the move. He tells me that he has twitches he cannot control: “They are annoying, but I have learned to live with them.” Oh well, after all it’s the inside that counts not the outside, right? The answer: “Yea, I guess.”

Why care? The answer is simple. Because God does. Because when I see that man in front of that store, I can’t help but seeing Jesus stand there with him in the cold. Because when I look into the eyes of that stranger passing me by, I cannot help but feel that Jesus is looking into those same eyes with all the care of the world. Because when I see Daniel twitch and twist, I see Jesus twisting and twitching with him. Maybe this seems a tad too cliché, a picture a bit too poignant, to affective for us.

And now faith, hope and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love.
1. Cor. 13.13

And yet, what would happen, if instead of praying for these people, I would pray that God would give me enough love to stand with that man, to look at those eyes the way he does, or to twist and shake with Daniel? It is my prayer that God would grant me enough love to live life with other, rather than in front of others to be with, rather than to be for, and to give everything to them, rather then just providing an example.

If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but to not have love, I am but a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.
1. Cor. 13.1