Doan
Doan seems like a pretty normal fourteen-year-old.
His dark hair’s a bit bleached at the ends, and he likes to slick it up in a lopsided wave on the top of his head. He’s good at math, languages, and playing soccer. He’s done a lot of odd jobs here and there, from moving furniture to bathing his neighbors’ dogs.
Photos of him and his friends show them posing in sunglasses and boxing gloves. For fun they play around-the-world ping-pong, elimination style. Losers have to do push-ups. When there are adults visiting, they congregate at the table to eavesdrop and tease and get a share of the snacks: Thai rice krispies squares, salted nuts, Pepsi, freezies in the heat…
In other ways Doan is more than normal, really special. He loves to worship God on the djembe drum, and chokes up easily in prayer-times. He’s got a clear sense of God’s presence and wants to follow hard.
Doan’s teacher says he’s the smartest kid in the whole group, though he hasn’t had much schooling. In truth, he flunked grade four a couple times and finally quit to sniff glue with other people from his slum. The teachers at that school beat him.
He’s got a scar from a knife wound, a drug deal gone wrong. Usually Doan’s dad is in jail, but he used to beat Doan with chains when he wasn’t locked away. Doan’s lived most of his life with his grandmother on his father’s side. He was born upcountry but sent to live in Klong Toey, one of Bangkok’s more infamous slums, when he was still just a baby.
Action movies, he likes, but says they’re a little too much like his life sometimes. Fear of pursuit, and not always getting away in time. He learned to smoke, ironically, in youth prison.
When he got out, he knew he wanted to quit drugs, and thought his friend was taking him to a temple where he could detox. Instead this friend brought him to The Shelter, Project L.I.F.E.'s drug rehab home. It’s been nine weeks already and Doan is doing much better.
He’s put on a lot of healthy weight, for a scrappy fourteen-year-old. He’s learned to sing, and pray, and apologize, and wash dishes with the other guys. Ordinary stuff, extraordinary progress for this more-than-normal, really special kid.
His dark hair’s a bit bleached at the ends, and he likes to slick it up in a lopsided wave on the top of his head. He’s good at math, languages, and playing soccer. He’s done a lot of odd jobs here and there, from moving furniture to bathing his neighbors’ dogs.
Photos of him and his friends show them posing in sunglasses and boxing gloves. For fun they play around-the-world ping-pong, elimination style. Losers have to do push-ups. When there are adults visiting, they congregate at the table to eavesdrop and tease and get a share of the snacks: Thai rice krispies squares, salted nuts, Pepsi, freezies in the heat…
In other ways Doan is more than normal, really special. He loves to worship God on the djembe drum, and chokes up easily in prayer-times. He’s got a clear sense of God’s presence and wants to follow hard.
Doan’s teacher says he’s the smartest kid in the whole group, though he hasn’t had much schooling. In truth, he flunked grade four a couple times and finally quit to sniff glue with other people from his slum. The teachers at that school beat him.
He’s got a scar from a knife wound, a drug deal gone wrong. Usually Doan’s dad is in jail, but he used to beat Doan with chains when he wasn’t locked away. Doan’s lived most of his life with his grandmother on his father’s side. He was born upcountry but sent to live in Klong Toey, one of Bangkok’s more infamous slums, when he was still just a baby.
Action movies, he likes, but says they’re a little too much like his life sometimes. Fear of pursuit, and not always getting away in time. He learned to smoke, ironically, in youth prison.
When he got out, he knew he wanted to quit drugs, and thought his friend was taking him to a temple where he could detox. Instead this friend brought him to The Shelter, Project L.I.F.E.'s drug rehab home. It’s been nine weeks already and Doan is doing much better.
He’s put on a lot of healthy weight, for a scrappy fourteen-year-old. He’s learned to sing, and pray, and apologize, and wash dishes with the other guys. Ordinary stuff, extraordinary progress for this more-than-normal, really special kid.
posted by sparrow anne at
2:11 a.m.
2 Comments:
praise God for redemption stories like doan's. praise God for people like you who see the 'extra' in the 'ordinary.'
Hi Sarah,
i just wanted to let you know how much I've enjoyed reading your blog over the last few months. Your stories have touched my heart - I'm feel enriched because of your words. I'll keep praying for you and the kids/groups that you're working with!
Rachel
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