The youngsters in Lebanon might be in harsh pain; their stories are similar to dark alleys, in this country situation. It is good to shed some light on them.
Some people have been struggling long before this burdensome economic crisis, and their situation today is even worse. The thought alone of children, teens, and young adults struggling with what should be the least of their concerns, is unbearable.
Nadim: a young boy in Lebanon
Nadim, one of Pro Terra Sancta's beneficiaries, is a 23 years old Lebanese young man and one of the unfair Lebanese system's victims. He grew up not knowing his parents. In fact, he was still a child when his mother had to send him to an orphanage, where he spent his days afraid of what tomorrow may bring.
People like Nadim are deprived of all their civil rights, that is, they are not registered as citizens and do not have official documents to enter schools, have a job, be hospitalized and have social security or insurance.
After leaving the orphanage at the age of 17, he was homeless for a long time and had to sleep on the streets every night on an empty stomach. He had to sell his clothes to buy anything to eat.
He tried to get jobs that did not require documentation, but something always seemed to get in the way. Instead of worrying about succeeding in High School finals and what college to attend, Nadim's concerns revolved around the search for a roof over his head and food to keep him on his feet.
A hard life
Luckily someone found out about him and decided to help him, at least until he could take care of himself.
However, the situation in Lebanon didn't help Nadim's case, and he found himself crying for help again. His thoughts kept shifting to the slight chances he had in finding a way out of his misery, while employed people were barely making it through these hard times.
Even though he is not homeless anymore, the room he lives in doesn't meet the standards of decent living conditions. There is no kitchen or heating, just one small room with a malfunctioning bathroom and a crumbling bed.
Nadim's clothes are all dusty and washed out and they are all gifts from a friend he met while living on the streets.
The accident and the fear
As if life wasn't hard enough on him already, he got hit by a car a few months back and couldn't get his medicines to get better.
Ever since the accident, Nadim has been thinking about his life, his childhood, and all the hardships he has been through, which put him in an unstable psychological condition and caused him severe panic attacks.
For the last few weeks, he has been afraid of staying alone as these panic attacks can occur at any time. A sudden wave of fear and discomfort washes over him every time he is by himself. His heart starts pounding fast. He becomes all sweaty even though he is getting chills. Trembling, difficulty in breathing, and chest pain are accompanied by weakness in movement and dizziness. His lack of knowledge and several collapses led him to the emergency room more than ten times in less than a week with the help of his friend, who made sure he got treated well.
Nadim's life has been a rollercoaster ever since he was born. The injustice in our world convicted a young boy who committed no crime. His only demands were to being able to eat a hot meal and stay warm. Unfortunately for him, these demands became luxuries he couldn't afford.
Pro Terra Sancta works for youngsters in Lebanon
Digging deeper into those dark alleys, we will see that this ray of light, which is represented by the help Pro Terra Sancta is giving, is what keeps people like Nadim going We have been knowing the boy just for a few time, and the fruits of our meeting are not properly ripe. But we do begin to understand that this story could be a new beginning, be it little as you might see.
Hope is what people in Lebanon do grasp strongly. Because, without hope, darkness is what is left.
