Stories of Hope: Louis

Louis lives in the Misisi slum of Lusaka, Zambia. He is five years old and has a wonderful smile. A ZOE Medical team met him one day as they were working in the summer of 2008. He was playful and loved being held.

A day later, however, Louis came into the clinic by himself, and they saw that his smile was overshadowed by something else. He lifted his pant leg to reveal a large burn just above his ankle.

Despite the language barrier, Louis seemed to understand that they could help him. Short on space in the simple stone church where they had set up the medical clinic, they placed Louis on the same altar that had been used for communion during worship days earlier.

The medical team had to clean his burn without benefit of anesthetic. Throughout the painful process they held his hand, shared lollipops, and sang songs. When he was finally bandaged, they lifted him to the ground to join his 8-year old brother who had wandered into the church.

Louis was in pain and found it difficult to stand on his injured leg. Silently and without hesitation, Louis’ brother turned around and Louis climbed onto his back.

Struck by the beautiful witness of Louis’ brother, a ZOE team member wrote in her journal, “If only we were as willing to follow the lead of the Good Shepherd, to lift the injured sheep and to stretch him across our shoulders. If only we were as willing to reach out when a brother or sister is hurting.”