World Leprosy Sunday - Don Herculano

We went to visit this guy on Sunday. 

Sunday was World Leprosy Day. It´s a day that we remember world-wide, those who have suffered or have been affected by Hansen´s Disease (aka. Leprosy). 

My husband is an ex-hansen patient. To read his experience with it, you can visit his blog here. We wanted to show our support of another ex-patient and headed out 100kms from our home to visit the elderly Don Herculano. I am not very familiar with this man´s story. But what I do know is that he has an extremely large heart and leads services in a makeshift church that the community has put up. 

Don Herculano is always smiling. He gets around on his crutches. Orthopedic shoes made at our Leprosy Hospital adorn his feet. The man lives in a one-room structure. One bed for his mentally challenged nephew who cares for him and one for himself. The floor to his house is new cement. A volunteer youth group went to his place last year and fixed up his home, replacing the dirt floor for the cement one. There are food staples lined up on a shelf on one side of the room - noodles, tomato paste, canned peas, oil, flour, etc. A quick glance of the room is all it takes to surmise the man´s condition. A second (and more trained) glance gives you a look at the care and pride the man has in what little he has. Everything has its place and there is nothing on the floor. His smile welcomes one and all. 

Many of our patients struggle fitting into their communities once they have been diagnosed. There is a lot of stigma associated with Leprosy. Its not uncommon for a patient to be literally shunned or cordoned off from the community. This is not the case with Don Herculano. He is obviously dearly beloved in his community. At his late age, he is still committed to serving his neighbors. A chair is always ready for a guest, a warm handshake from his mutilated hand, fruit from his neatly tended groves, even a self-penned song on his guitar are offered to the delight of anyone willing to listen. 

Funny how a man who is technically lacking physically from the unfortunate consequences of the disease can apparently be so much more complete than most of us who have all our body parts intact.  

Just some food for thought… 

We are the hand and feet of Christ… Go ye therefore!