Ode to Sammy

I found out this week that someone very special to me passed away. Sammy, was someone who lived at Coram Deo (in Haiti) when I was there in 2005-2006. Sometime after I left, he was sent back to the countryside to live with his family. I heard this week that he passed away there.
Sammy was developmentally delayed and an absolute joy to be around. He exuded a kind of joy that you don't find very often. It was a rare day when Sammy was sad or unhappy. He rejoiced in the simple pleasures of life, food, laughter, and people. Many afternoons or evenings, I would find him on the jungle gym in the yard. There was a fake steering wheel there and he would pretend to be a tap-tap (taxi) driver. He would ask me for my money as I sat beside him and I would pretend to hand him a coin. One time, I decided to really play along and I yelled that he has almost hit a pedestrian. He reacted quite strongly to my pretend yelling and he told me that he quit and that I had better drive instead:)
Whenever I had a bad day, I would find Sammy and he would cheer me right up. On my last day in Haiti, I was very sad to go and cried as I said my farewells. When it was Sammy's turn I gave him a hug and told him that I was going far away and I didn't know if I'd see him again. He turned his big eyes to me and asked, "have you seen the cat?". He knew how to make a tough situation much lighter.
It is for Sammy and other's like him that I desire to go back to Haiti. I look forward to starting an education program for students with severe learning disabilities, providing them with food, life skills, and the love of God.
Sammy, you will be missed.