Tabon and My Wide-Legged Jeans

Last year, looking for a hot pink, three tiered party dress for an upcoming 80’s dance, I stumbled upon a pair of wide-legged jeans for $9.00 at Value Village. It was a steal! Now, imagine that same pair of dark blue, wide-legged jeans on my 6 foot 2, maybe, on a good day, 110 pound male Didinga neighbor, Thabon.
As a new, trusting and totally naïve missionary in Didinga I was robbed almost weekly. Shirts, gourmet, handpicked teabags, our clothesline, the infamous blanket and my wide-legged jeans were swiped in those initial months in Sudan.
Although, Carley’s stolen hat was spotted and recovered from the head of a nearby chief and a pair of turquoise underpants were returned, my goods seemed to be lost to the world. Until…one day, while greeting Thabon I couldn’t help but notice his dirty, but quite fashionable, wide-legged jeans.
Awkwardly, and with the most limited of language skills, I said something like, “You’re wearing my pants Thabon.” Not surprisingly, that in this land that has yet to be introduced to the female pant-leg, he was a bit confused by my statement.
Hearing about what was lost and now found, my teammate Bill had only one question, “Well, how did he look in ‘em?”
Our team leader approached Thabon, yet he refused to return what was not rightly his.
Months passed without word from Thabon, it seemed that the jeans had caused a “breech” in our relationship. Then one Sunday, arriving sweaty and late (some things never change) for church, I spied my wide-legged jeans hanging on the line.
Thabon joined us for church that day. The message was on the Parable of the Prodigical Son. “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.” Luke 15:20
In this land in which sons steal from mothers and youth are trained to kill for cattle, Thabon chose to go against the grain, he chose to right his wrong, he chose to give me back my jeans.