My boy is wicked smart.

For the past week-ish, we have been working at a school. We have been helping kids with homework and helping improve the facilities where we can. I have been with one particular kid for most of this time. I am going to change his name to James for safety reasons.

“He pushes people away before they get a chance to leave him. It’s a defense mechanism. And for 20 years, he’s been alone because of that. And if you push him right now, it’s gonna be the same thing all over again, and I’m not gonna let that happen to him.” — Sean (aka Robin Williams)

James is a problem child. He runs from class, beats up anyone who looks at him funny, and tries to jump off the second floor of the school. The teachers and staff have completely given up on him. But the kid is smart. He speaks fluent English and is above average when it comes to math.

“You don’t want to hear that I got cigarettes put out on me when I was a little kid.” -Will (Matt Damon)

“What, you want to come in here and save me? Is that what you want to do? Do I have a sign that says save me on my back?” -Will (Matt Damon)

James has clearly been hurt, and his dad is not in the picture. His peers are terrified of him because he beats them he has no friends. He doesn’t think he needs friends. He can’t recognize the fact he needs help. Even our team, who has been nothing but supportive and loving he, turns on us in a second to the point of violence. It is hard to love through that, so I understand the teacher’s perspective. But this kid is clearly hurting. He had run out of class that day, and I followed him. He started throwing rocks at me, and when he was out of rocks I grabbed him and said “We are on your side, we love you and want you to succeed.” I let him go. He storms off, looks me dead in the eyes, and flips me off.

What truly sucks is we are leaving him in literally two days. We go to Lesotho, a neighboring county. So, we can’t be there to continue to establish trust.

I can’t be this kid’s Robin Williams, and that is kind of hard for me because he needs one, and I am just as stubborn as he is. But there is hope in the fact that Jesus absolutely dunks on Robin Williams when it comes to wisdom and comfort. Pray that James discovers Jesus in a real, raw way. And that there is a consistent person to instruct him and instill biblical values in him. Someone who fights for the kid who wants to fight everyone else. He has potential; he just needs the right person to unlock it.

“Every day, I come by your house and I pick you up. And we go out. We have a few drinks and a few laughs, and it’s great. But you know what the best part of my day is? For about 10 seconds, from when I pull up to the curb and when I get to your door, ’cause I think maybe I’ll get up there and I’ll knock on the door and you won’t be there. No goodbye. No see you later. No nothing. You just left. I don’t know much, but I know that.” — Chuckie (Ben Affleck)

Chuckie says this to Will because he knows he has so much more potential than he is showing the world. That is my prayer for this kid. He is super bold, and he could be a great leader in his community. He just needs someone to unlock it for him.

Love you all,

-Drew McKinney

P.S. If you haven’t seen Good Will Hunting, it is a phenomenal movie. It is R viewer discretion adviced. But it is so good it will make you cry.