Freedom Fighter

Sweaty little hands grip mine as I walk along a brick-paved road which serves as a bridge through the endless sea of rice patties that lap in the wind on either side of the pathway. We are off to visit the "Freedom Fighter"! Danny and Joseph walk on either side of me as Metali, Joshua, and Mr. Waid follow behind. We pass baby goats and village children playing soccer, a man who sells tin bowls riding by on his bicycle, a tiny tea shop, and beautifully constructed mud huts of which one belongs to the Freedom Fighter. Single-file we enter this house of the hero. Ducking into a dimly lit room a man lays on a bed watching an Indian TV show. It is the Freedom Fighter. He tells me he is happy to meet me and proceeds to tell me why he is called the Freedom Fighter. He fought in the revolution when Bangladesh use to be called East Pakistan in 1971 and helped gain Bangladesh's independence from Pakistan. I look at his walls which are covered with pictures of the president. Bangladesh's president among pictures of Hindu gods. According to his walls they were successful in gaining freedom. Mr. Waid says the Freedom Fighter believes in Jesus. As I sat there listening to him talk to Mr. Waid I could tell he liked Mr. Waid a lot. He motioned for me to come closer, holding my hand he says, "This man should have the Nobel Peace Prize for what he has done in our community." I am touched by how this half-paralyzed man recognizes and accepts the impact of Christians in his village. We prayed with the Freedom Fighter before ducking back out into the sunlight and his last words to us were, "May God bless you in your work."