Superarse

I like the word.  Superarse.  In Spanish it means to exceed expectations, to better oneself, to overcome.  In my conversations with the day laborers I visited this morning, the word was uttered several times.

One spoke of growing up in Mexico as one of the youngest of 10 children in his family, of feeling like a tiny plant in the yard whose caretakers walked by each day and provided what was necessary for survival, but who didn't pay close attention or nurture the plant.  His parents encouraged him to leave school at a young age and work like his older siblings.  At 18, he had the opportunity to marry his girlfriend, but he wasn't ready to settle down and resign himself to continuing the cycle of poverty in that place.  A few years later, he moved north. To superarse.  He was into some destructive behaviors for a while, but when he saw how it was affecting his relationship with his nieces and nephews, he decided to give that up.  How else could he encourage his younger relative to not do drugs as teenagers?  He talked about continuing his education, studying English with a tutor, which he is doing now, all so he can superarse.  He wants to do more than what was ever expected of him.

Another man spoke of his family in Mexico, of the 4 girls who have grown up from a distance during the 8 years he has been away working.  Though they speak on the phone daily, when he visits, the girls shy away from his hugs because they do not know him.   He wants to go back next year and stay so that he can know his children and they can know their father.  He says, "You think money will be enough, but it isn't.  It can't take the place of that relationship."  He came north so that his girls could superarse, but now he feels that going home is the best way to help them do that.  His love for his children was so clear as he talked about them.

A third man shared about his parents in Guatemala who wanted him to do well in school, but who were illiterate.  How could they have helped him with his studies?  Now he studies English so his children will have a good model and, though they are in another country, he encourages them regularly to work hard in school and stick with their studies so that they can superarse.  And most importantly, he says, he has established a foundation of faith in Jesus Christ for them.  Because of their faith, he says, they can make good choices and know they are loved and know their own value.  And though they live in a poor place, they will superarse.              

What a gift to hear these stories of pain and of walking through the pain to the other side.  I am reminded of a quote from Helen Keller:  Although the world is full of suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it.

I pray that these men will continue to find ways to move forward and superarse and that their example will inspire me to do the same.