Guarulhos airport, São Paulo, Brazil.
Neto and Isabel had gone there to meet a Dutch cousin of hers. He, together with his wife, was making a tourist excursion through Brazil. When they discovered that they would have a four-hour wait, they had written to suggest that they meet. So, after the initial greeting, they took care of the check-in for the next phase of the trip and then went to drink guaraná in the restaurant of a well-known fast food chain, sitting down way in the back. Isabel and Lia sat on a sofa with their backs to the wall and Neto and Alex placed themselves on the other side of the table. They joined hands and closed their eyes while Neto asked God’s blessing on the food, on those moments together and on the remainder of the couple’s trip.
The couples pulled out albums with the photos that represented their lives and stayed there showing them to each other and talking animatedly. At a certain point, cousin Alex pulled out two photos, with relatives that they shared, to give to Isabel. Since she wanted to remember the name of each person, she put out her hand to take her pen from her purse. Startled, her eyes met Neto’s.
— What’s wrong?
— My purse! Where is my purse?!
Everyone started to look—under the table, under the sofa, under the chairs… Could it have been stolen? Impossible! They were in an isolated spot. Certainly they would have noticed the approach of a stranger! Isabel’s heart beat rapidly, while her eyes reflected enormous anguish.
They retraced their steps, went back to the car, to the check-in… Nothing! There, Isabel recalled having taken something out of her purse. So it could only have happened in the restaurant. Probably while they were praying!
— Lord, how is it possible that I (such a careful person) can have been the victim of a terrible thing like this?! I always hang on to my purse! How terrible! How
shaming!
They returned to the restaurant… The manager was called and then the airport security… What was in the purse? A passport? Dollars? No, nothing like that. Maybe about twenty reals (at least it was only a little bit)… And a camera to register the encounter… And, oh yes, the documents! A cheque book… Two credit cards… A cell phone…
The cell phone! Neto’s eyes brightened. He put his hand into his pocket and dialed Isabel’s cell phone from his own. A female voice answered. She said that she had almost “tripped” over the purse in the parking lot.
— Look for me in front of Terminal One. I’m wearing a red blouse and blue jeans.
Neto rushed ahead of them, making the distance between the two terminals in record time. Once there, they kept waiting, watching… No woman! No purse! And the cell phone only went to the message box now. One of the policemen alerted them.
— It was a trick. Let’s go to the police station immediately!
While they walked, Isabel tried to explain the situation to the couple. Her cousin was very distressed.
— I’ve literally got a stomachache. I feel terrible for us having been the cause of this. If it had not been for us, you wouldn’t be here. Neither would you be in this situation!
Isabel looked at the red faces of Alex and Lia. Deep down, she thought:
— You know what? He’s right! No, he’s not! No way! There was absolutely nothing wrong in their seeking this contact with us!
The sin at that moment was hers, not theirs. How did that verse go again? About not being anxious about anything…?
— Lord, here I am. Running in the airport! And I’m super anxious! Really, Father, I’m wondering if you aren’t exaggerating a little with that word “anything”? How can I avoid it? What does the rest of that verse say again? Something about letting my supplications be known to God. Father, I need to control my emotions and give a good testimony. Now! Please give me strength.
And thus she affirmed to her cousins:
— No! That’s not so! It was good that we met. Really! And it was God that permitted this. I don’t know why He did it, but there has to be a reason! It’s going to be ok!
And so she managed to somewhat alleviate the couple’s affliction, and her own as well. She took them to the Departures level and gave them a big goodbye hug, promising to send them an e-mail with the details of what would still happen.
In the airport police station, Isabel filed her report of the theft while Neto canceled the credit cards. Now she remembered her glasses, her identity card, driver’s license, CPF (tax registration card), the health service cards, the documents of the car, the keys of the house… She sat there, quietly and pensively, while the forms were being filled out.
— Lord, now I remember another part of that verse—with thanksgiving. And I can already see a lot of things that I can be thankful for. After all, I’m not waiting in a line in a busy police station, in the middle of all kinds of upset or depraved people. There’s even air conditioning in this place! And we are the only “customers”!
I’m also grateful that it was not the belongings of the cousins that they took. I hate to think about how distressing it would be if they would have to replace tickets and passports in a strange land. But Lord, I’m really upset! That place seemed so safe. Why did you allow this? Alex and Lia left here with a terrible impression of Brazil. And we never even finished our conversation…
Her prayer was interrupted.
— Isabel, I just managed to cancel the cards but I asked them if anyone had bought anything with them today. Let me add up what they told me. It’s two thousand, seven hundred reals! They went to two supermarkets near here and had a party with your cards!
The people in the police station expressed their horror and solidarity. One said.
— You were in the police station at the same time as they were making these purchases. You may be able to cancel this debt.
Isabel signed the forms that had been filled out and waited while Neto canceled her other documents. She stayed watching him, noticing the large number of white threads woven through his abundant black hair. They were getting older, but also more experienced before the Lord. And that was also why she could be thanking Him at that moment. She wondered how it would have been if Neto had reacted in another manner—if he had become angry or resentful, scolding her for her carelessness and blaming her. He had put his Christian faith into practice, being considerate and compassionate, avoiding the hard words and censure that might have popped out on an occasion like this. Another thought came to mind –I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. That was somewhere in Psalm 119.
When they left the airport, Isabel phoned their children and told them the story. Remembering the keys, she suggested that they change the padlock on the gate. While she was still talking to them, she noticed that Neto had turned on the right turn signal to go off the main road. She looked at him in surprise.
— Let’s stop at the supermarkets and see if they’ll give us copies of the credit card receipts of “your purchases”. After all, we live on the other side of town and it will be hard to come back another time.
Even though she didn’t totally agree—she really did want to get home and rest—she nodded her head. And so they went. They discovered that “Isabel” had purchased 2 DVD players, a microwave oven, a VCR and other things, simultaneously in both stores, for a total value of three thousand, three hundred reals. The signatures were similar but there were some obvious differences. This made them feel a little better about what might be the result of the dispute they expected to have with the credit card company. And as they drove home, they tried to foresee the other bad things that could still result. Would that be the mere beginning of a series of problems?
— I am so mad at those thieves! And I don’t see anyone doing anything to stop them. The police just registered our complaint—passively. In the supermarkets, the same thing happened. Those women were still there when those cards were cancelled and no one did anything to catch them. Tomorrow another person is going to suffer like me, or even worse. I feel like King David, appealing to His Avenger. Neto, is it ok if I ask God to punish them?
— It’s ok with me!
— I already did it. I told God that I wanted Him to provide a big chastisement and that it might be something that they would immediately recognize as a consequence of the theft. Then He can use it to convert them afterwards. Can you imagine one of them calling our house and asking forgiveness?
— You really have a fertile imagination, Isabel!
But the day was not over yet. Once they arrived at home, the telephone rang. It was a man, saying that he had found the purse in a garbage bin. He told them he was the watchman for a restaurant that had been closed for repairs and that he could meet them there. It seemed strange. Could it be a trap? They wondered:
— Well, they can’t use the credit cards anymore. Maybe they want to kidnap us now so they can use the bankcards.
After joint family prayer, Neto left again. This time he was accompanied by his oldest son, Tiago, and a friend of his. Isabel called her mother and father in-law to ask them to pray and to implore the mercies of God. An hour later, Tiago called, saying that all was well. Isabel and her youngest son jumped with joy.
— Now tell me. What’s left?
— Used tissues, a roll of peppermint…
— Quit it, young man! I don’t want to know about that!
Tiago laughed and continued.
— Glasses, keys, Identity Card, Driver’s License, CFF, car documents…
Still missing were the cheque book, the credit cards, the cell phone and the camera. Yet, despite the concern with the upcoming credit card bills, their relief was great.
Isabel called her in-laws. Grandma Valdete rejoiced:
— Thank God, no one was hurt, But I feel so badly for those “gringos”. I will certainly ask God to protect them during the rest of the journey.
A few hours later, Isabel left Neto in the living room organizing the documents for the cancellations, and went to lie down with her Bible in hand. She wanted to check the wording of the passage that had come to her mind that afternoon. She found it in Philippians 4. “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”
— Yes, Father, I did try to follow this today. I’m not understanding your reasons for this but I am going to go to sleep trusting in the next words of the passage: And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
(Note at the end: The credit card companies insisted on charging for the purchases but after four months of “dialog” they forgave the debt. The cousins spent three more weeks traveling in Brazil without any additional hardships. The thieves have still not called to seek forgiveness.)
Elizabeth Zekveld Portela
Published in SAF em Revista
Official Publication of the National Federation of Ladies Auxiliaries
Presbyterian Church of Brazil
July/August/September 2001