By Marco Antônio Cruz – FWB press
It was her birthday and Suely Amorim de Lima didn’t know if she turned 57 or 58 years old. But, a certainty of being born on December 17th, 1964. “Now that I’ve started studying again I will know for sure”, she said promisingly.
The initiative of volunteers from Fraternity without Borders, “Dream without Borders”(Sonhar sem Fronteiras), allowed Suely to make her dream of writing and learning math come true. A black woman, with a vibrant look and hairs beginning to whiten, she has already been taken care of for eight months at the “Clinic of the Soul” (Clínica da Alma) — a partner of the project Fraternity on the Street, at the Campo Grande, MS, location — for treatment of chemical dependency.
Among the numbers related to Suely’s life, there is a marriage 20 years, four daughters, and two grandsons. Just as her age, there are more numbers being discovered in her story, such as the amount of days she has missed her grandsons, who live with their mother in Natal, RN, as well as the distance between them in kilometers.
“I have family out there. I have my husband. I’ve been here for eight months and he’s already come here twice. He came by on Saturday and said that after the holidays, In January, he will come here. He is an alcoholic. He said he will come. I also have four daughters. They were all drug users, but they’ve already gone back to the church.”
Even with her remarkable and objective speech, Suely also feels the need to express herself in writing. “What I most enjoy studying is math. But I also want to learn to write, so I can send letters to my grandsons and my daughters”, she said emotionally. A few months ago, Suely was able to see her grandsons through video call.
“I make my own crochets and rugs so that I can buy a simple cell phone and be able to see my grandsons who live in Natal. Lord willing, I will be able to save enough of my own money and I’ll be able to buy it. My daughter, who used to use drugs, got to know a church and went to the city of Natal. It’s a little difficult to talk from here, but the pastor was able to get her number and I saw my grandsons. And I will see them again, because I will be able to get my cell phone, which God will grant me”, plans Suely.
A resident of the São Conrado district, about 10km away from the center of Campo Grande, MS, she became aware of the Clinic of the Soul through a colleague who used to do drugs with her.
“She would always call me, but I never came, because I have my husband out there. Then, on the day I went to receive my emergency aid benefits, a couple passed by and saw me. I was really scrawny at this point, already thinking about the drug that I would buy, and they asked me if I would like to accept Jesus. I said that ‘I’ve already been born, so I’ve already accepted Jesus’. Then they said ‘we know, but do you accept living with him?’. So they gave me the address and I came”.
Nearing 60 years of age, Suely Amorim de Lima continues recovering and seeking to realize interrupted dreams. She continues telling her story, understanding what has been subtracted and the values that are being summed.
“God bless you all who come from so far away. Just so that you can see how much Jesus really loves us: people come from so far away to see us. I feel so much happiness, God brings people with pure love to come after those of us who have no value”.
