I am sharing a post I read on Facebook from Chris Banner whom I knew from my days volunteering at the Keswick Convention. Chris is a sound engineer with BBC Radio and he was responsible for the sound in the youth work at Rawsnley site during the Keswick Convention before the merger of the two sites. He is reminiscing about an incident which probably happened some time ago. He still has the memento - a cross made by the young lad whom he helped. He first posted this in April 2017 and it referred to an incident 6 years earlier when the boy named 'J' was 5. So I calculate that 'J' is now 18. What a lovely story of how an act of kindness can make a difference to the life of a child or young person.
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6 years ago a little boy with ADHD and other learning difficulties came to Word Alive with his parents and into Lunar Bar where I was working with the youth team on sound. He was 5 years old and needed a team member to constantly watch over him to prevent him from hurting himself or others. I'll just call him J. It was often difficult to watch but the team rallied around to help this young boy.
There was one particular day when he was very disruptive and there seemed little we could do to calm him down. He would often run past my sound desk and try to move faders when I wasn't watching. What could I do to help I thought. He wasn't my responsibility but I felt I wanted to do something.
As he ran passed for the umpteenth time I held out my headphones so he could see them. He stopped. I looked at the leader and I remember that they nodded approvingly. I sat him down in a chair placed the headphones on him and pressed play on my CD player. I can't remember what I played but immediately he calmed down and seemed mesmerised by the audio and flashing lights on my sound desk.
After 15 minutes or so l had to take the headphones back and he returned to his leader really excited with a big smile on his face. Every day after that J returned at one point or another and looked at me and the headphones. He would sit quietly on the stage riser at my mix position until I offered him the cans.
At the end of the conference just before he left with mum and dad he walked up to me with his leader and gave me a little cross that he had decorated with jewels. His leader had helped him in his craft group to make me a thank you gift.
I have carried that cross in the pull out draw of my console for the last 6 years. Every time I need to get out a sharpie, rubber tipped pen for the touch screen or a drum key because the drummer has forgotten his, I see J's cross and it reminds me of those kids who need our help, encouragement and support and who may be seen to have been dealt a rough hand. That cross also reminds me that God loves J very much indeed. J decorated that cross with a lot of jewels!
God sacrificed his greatest jewel Jesus His son for each one of us to set us free from sin - that's what we've been learning this week in my venue. J's jewelled cross touched me then and it touched me again today - why? Because today J came to visit me after 6 years.
He's now 11 years old. He is a changed young man. He can hold a good conversation and seems to be doing really well. He came today with a leader who didn't need to restrain him or constantly need to watch him. He wanted to know all about the tech equipment and tried out my headset and hand held mic. He told me he helps out at his church now on the sound desk. He brought a camera with him and took lots of pictures of the sound desk and other technical gear.
I told him how 6 years previously he had made me the cross and I pulled it out of the draw to show him. He looked really pleased and took a picture of it and then asked for a selfie with me.
As I write I'm tired at the end of a long week of work here at Word Alive. I have a tear in my eye but I'm thankful to God for this little boy and the impact he's had on me and his constant reminder every time l open up my console draw why I serve God here at Word Alive and further afield. Thank you J - Hope to see you again next year.
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