orphans with special needs – Page 73

May 19, 2012

Being Grateful…

Camera 360 — A rainbow always reminds me of how gracious God is to allow Noah to save his family & the animals so that we are all here today… and to see a double rainbow! Thank you God.

i have been ~~rather~~ very frustrated with my little guy these couple of days. “Why?”, you ask.

Well, he is turning 8 (yes, time certainly has flown). And of course an upcoming birthday means presents! Now normally i’m as excited as my son about presents. i love ripping the wrapper off and gasping at the lovely gift. But this time, instead of feeling that excitement, i have increasingly felt how demanding my 8-year old can be. i feel his “ungratefulness” so much more than ever before. Why? i’m not quite sure.

It seems that he is always wanting more. Which child doesn’t? It seems that he isn’t happy with what he already has or is so very quickly bored with what he has been given. But haven’t most of us at some point in time felt that the grass is greener on the other side?

i think some of these feelings come from having my heart broken over my little Heath and my lovely Heather. They have ~~so little~~, NO, they have nothing! They have no toys or books and certainly have not been given presents. They have no mummy or daddy who would care whether they knew how to be grateful for what they have. They would be very grateful just for someone who would smile at them, talk to them and play with them. They would even be grateful for just a little part of a toy or a rag of a doll to call their own.

reecesrainbow_heath20120301 — 11 year old Heath is a cutie who needs his family asap.

reecesrainbow_heather20120301 — 10 year old Heather is a sweetie needing a family asap.

Look at their small innocent faces. i can’t stand that they have been all alone in this world all these years and in institutes at that, understaffed, underfunded places which don’t really care!! They would thrive so well in a loving family environment. They would be a wonderful addition to any family. Would that be your family? Click on their picture to find out more.

You can help, even if you can’t adopt. You can pray for them, you can donate towards their adoption grant, you can share their stories far and wide so that their family can find them faster. You can help, so please do.

If you do help, do leave a comment below so i can thank you personally.

syc

May 13, 2012September 29, 2012

Who Am I?…

i wondered about this question a fairly bit – at least when i was a child growing up, even more as a teenager trying to define herself. i have not asked this question of myself for quite a while now but the other day, it popped into my mind again. It caused me to look at myself today and myself maybe 20 years earlier (showing my age, huh?)

So who am i? i am a mother, a wife, a daughter, a friend, a sister, a godmother, a sister-in-christ, a writer, a blogger (yes there is a difference between the two), a photographer (not professionally, but passionately), and most importantly, i am a child of God.

Does any one role define me? Can any one role tell you about the whole me? No, i believe i am all of that and, prayerfully, i hope i am also much more than my roles.

i love being a wife and a mother – a home manager in essence. i enjoy being a friend and a sister-in-christ. i wish i could be a better daughter and godmother. i hope that my passion in life would be revealed through my writing and blogging. i want to be a professional photographer (maybe some time in the future i will be).

But the one role that possibly tells you more about me than any of the others is – i am a child of God. i believe, 100 and 1 percent, that i am God’s creation and i am here to fulfill His purposes.

Is that too simplistic a way to think? Maybe. But life is complicate enough as it is, i don’t need to make it even harder.

However, being God’s child does not mean that all my other roles take a backseat. In fact, it gives them more direction. When i am with my son, i am a mother to him and i pray i will be able to mirror God to him. Love him as God loves me. When i am with my husband, i am a wife and again God speaks very clearly about this in the Bible (see here). When i am with my parents/parents-in-law, i aim to be as loving and filial a daughter/daughter-in-law as i can be because God says to honour my parents.

You see there is no question as to what i should be doing in each situation because if you look at the Bible, truly look at God’s word, it is all there.

Now TODAY, right now, i want to bring my role as a prayer warrior and advocate of special needs orphans to the forefront. Most of you would know that i have been a prayer warrior with Reece’s Rainbow for more than 2 months now. You have read about my little Heath and my lovely Heather. And i thank you for your kind attention.

i still pray for them both but TODAY i want to highlight Heather. She is an adorable little girl who has Down Syndrome. But because of that one little extra chromosome, she is an orphan. She will be turning 11 in a few months and have had no one care about that for all those long years. We have very little information about her and that does not bear well, because we have no real knowledge of her actual condition and the circumstances she lives in. What we do know is that she is a child who needs a loving family to care for her, to choose her to be part of their family so that she can excel in life. Could you be her family? Would you join me in prayer for her?

i feel that Heather seems to be overlooked and the reason being there is so little known about her. But as i have said before, this does not make her need less, it makes her need more. The way i see it, she is more neglected in a way than little Heath who has had a little bit more exposure (this is only because a family managed to spot him – no interaction was allowed – when they went to pick up their adopted son from the same institute).

So please don’t let her be pushed to the side any longer. Share her story, donate to her adoption grant (click here) – a large increase in her grant would get her more notice and make it easier for a family to reach her, pray that her family comes for her. Thank you.

syc

May 5, 2012September 29, 2012

Joy, or “Just Wait?”

i would like to start this post with an apology.

If you have been my friend and you have been a new mum or a new dad and i have been less than encouraging, i am sorry. i am sorry for all the over-the-top comments i have made about the ‘shoulds’ and ‘should-nots’ of parenthood. i am most definitely no expert, just a mum who is also learning her way around this challenging yet fulfilling place called ‘parenthood’.

What i should have been doing is cheering you on with comments such as, “You are doing great.”, “Don’t worry. Things will turn fine when she/he grows up.”, “You have done such a wonderful job of raising her/him.”, “You are a fantastic mum/dad.”, “Just you wait till she/he smiles that first smile.”.

The link below leads to a post written with great perspective – a perspective every parent should be inspired to have.

Have a read. Joy, or “Just Wait?” | Diving for Pearls.

justwait20120505 — It still takes my breath away to think that he grew from this helpless day old babe to this very active, funny almost 8-year old boy!

In just 15 days, my little guy turns 8! Time has flown! Many of the “Just Waits” have come and gone, sadly, but i have so many more “Just Waits” to come. And i look forward to them, gladly.

As i read this article, i can’t help but think about all the orphans listed on Reece’s Rainbow who are still waiting, just waiting; just waiting for their forever families to come and get them, just waiting for a mummy or a daddy to pick them up and swing them around, just waiting for siblings who would play with them, just waiting to be in a loving home. And it is a hope we can bring to fruit – we just need to keep praying, keep advocating, keep sharing. Consider adopting one of these precious ones if you can.

Please go to Reece’s Rainbow to find out more. And remember my little Heath and my lovely Heather– they are just waiting; just waiting for joy.

syc