There is a scene in the famous play, ‘Les Misérables,’ where a little girl named Cosette is singing and dreaming about a castle on a cloud. At this point in the story she is living with a couple who own a pub and are treating her very poorly. She escapes to her ‘special place’ and dreams,
“There is a castle on a cloud,
I like to go there in my sleep,
Aren’t any floors for me to sweep,
Not in my castle on a cloud.
There is a lady all in white,
Holds me and sings a lullaby,
She’s nice to see and she’s soft to touch,
She says Cosette I love you very much,
I know a place where no one’s lost,
I know a place where no one cries,
Crying at all is not allowed,
Not in my castle on a cloud.”
Cosette’s dream is to be safe, to be happy, but above all to be loved.
Her story continues, and she is rescued from her troubled life and she goes on to be happy and indeed loved.
Recently I visited a children’s home here in Guatemala. I was with our street team and we were visiting a little girl who has been rescued from the streets. She is part of a family with many difficulties and has suffered a lot in her young life.
She was often the one whom her mother would take her anger out on, both verbally and physically. Her older brothers were increasingly taking her to the streets and forcing her to do solvents with them. They themselves are only children. If anyone needed rescuing it was her.
Fortunately she was rescued and now she literally lives in a castle on a hill. The children’s home where she is now living is just outside the city on a hillside surrounded by trees and beautiful views. The girls house is a brightly coloured pink and purple castle and every little girl that lives there is seen as a princess. Her future is looking brighter as she is now in a safe place, where people care for her, treat her well and love her. Like all children deserve, like all people deserve.
It saddens me to think that unlike Cosette this little girl probably didn’t have a place to escape to, a place to dream of. She probably didn’t know that she could dream or how to do so. Thankfully now she can learn how to dream and see those dreams turn into reality.
Like this little girl, rescued from an abusive life, and Cosette we all desire to be loved, we need to be loved. How incredible is it that we can be, that we are?
We are loved by a Good Father, a love that is so great, love that is unconditional, that is pure. What a gift.
We don’t need to dream of a castle on a cloud, we can be rescued and know that God has already prepared a place for us in His mansion. A place where we will be safe, happy and loved, a place even more beautiful that a princess’ castle on a hillside.