Something I feel good about........



Maya sleeping in her birth-mother's arms

 Last week was Maya's birthday.  Birthdays are always a big deal to the children celebrating them, but Maya's birthday has special meaning for me as well.  Should I be granted the opportunity to lay on my death-bed and reflect back over my life before dying, I will smile with satisfaction when I remember Maya.  I haven't done too many things in my life that I'm completely satisfied with, but bringing Maya home to her family has certainly been one of them.

I first met Maya in Haiti, shortly after her birth in 2006.  Her mother was already struggling to raise four children.  The entire family was living in a one-room straw and mortar hut about the size of a small bedroom.  Some days they would go without eating, on other days they might have boiled breadfruit or a basket of mangoes.  The children were often sick.  I had gotten involved in their lives to the extent that I was able to arrange a sponsor who paid for the children's schooling and had helped numerous times with food needs and housing.  Maya's mother had been implanted with some sort of medication in her upper arm that was supposed to prevent pregnancy for four years; but less than two years later......she found herself pregnant.  She showed up on my porch one afternoon with her arms full of baby and her eyes full of tears and asked me if I could find a family to raise her little girl as she just didn't see how she was going to be able to provide for even the most basic of lives for her.

Maya and her mom enjoying time together.

Through miracle, coincidence, or the grace of God, I found a young couple in Minnesota who desperately wanted to adopt her.    Thus began the most stressful and emotionally draining two and a half years of my life!  Just when it seemed that Maya's adoption would never be completed..... miracles began falling like dominoes, and we were able to bring Maya home.

Now, a little over one year later, Maya is thriving and happy in her "new" family.  Each day she brings new joy to her parents, who love her more than they ever thought possible.  She's strong, healthy, bright, funny, musical, creative, and a delight in every way.  When I think of where she came from and where she is; the life she would have had compared to the life she is living; I swell with pride.

Maya's birth family loves her very much and continually ask me for news of her.  Each new picture or story that I share with them helps to fill the gap of missing her and they thank God for her new life.  How thankful I am to have been a part of Maya's story! 

Maya and me in Jeremie, Haiti

Why I would fire my music history professor

Last night, on my way home from pottery class, I heard this amazing orchestral piece on the radio. The first thing I heard upon starting up my car was an unfamiliar piano piece that sounded like Chopin. I'm always so pleased with myself when I can correctly identify the composer of an unfamiliar piece just by hearing a few bars of music and, of course, I readily credit my amazing music history professor for this. This definitely was Chopin.


But then..... much to my surprise, the orchestra came in. What???!!! An orchestra? Chopin never wrote anything for orchestra! I must be mistaken. Completely baffled, I continued listening all through the first movement. When the second movement came along, I was convinced I was hearing hints of Chopin nocturnes. Whoever wrote this piano concerto must have been inspired by Chopin.  By the third movement, I was incredulous at the audacity of this Chopin copycat because now, it seemed a Mazurka was blaring out of my car speakers!

Although I had reached my destination by the beginning of the third movement, I stayed in my car until the end of the piece. I had to know who the composer was! At the end of the piece, the announcer said, "that was Chopin's piano concerto no. 2 played by........."

I was stunned! Although I would never presume to call myself a pianist, I do "play at" the piano and Chopin is one of my favorite composers for that instrument. I had NO IDEA he had composed not one, but  apparently TWO piano concertos. This embarrassing and grievous gap in my musical knowledge must be the fault of my music history professor, who never shared this information with me!

For Shame!!!

Lost and Found

Eddy and I are back from our 11 day trip to the west coast.  What a great time we had!  Oceans, mountains, Redwood forests, miles and miles of scenic highway, delicious food, and some much needed time together....

A couple of days ago, I left Eddy sleeping in the hotel room and went to sit in the lobby.  While there, I drank a cup of coffee, read the newspaper, and visited briefly with a friend who was checking out.  When I went back to the room, Eddy was just waking up.  We spent some time watching the drama of the Chilean miners unfold and then decided to head out and search for some breakfast.

It was only then that I realized I had left my purse sitting on the floor next to my chair in the hotel lobby.  I raced over in a panic.  Of course, it was no longer where I had left it.  I rushed up to the counter and asked if anyone had turned in a purse, hoping against hope....  The clerk said yes, a purse had been turned in and asked me to identify it. 

When I got back to the hotel room, I looked inside and there was all my "stuff," including my credit cards and over $300 in cash.  Not a thing was missing.  How thankful I am for honest people!  And how thankful I am that I left my purse laying around in this country instead of some others I've been in!!

If I had forgotten my purse in Haiti, I may have recovered it but the money would most certainly be gone.  It would have been found by one of two types of people; the first would be a criminally minded thug who would pocket the money without a second thought.  The second would be a god-fearing Christian who would take one look at the money and throw their hands up in the air, praising God.  "Mezami!  Bon Dye bon!  Gade yon Bon Dye mwen sevi.  Ou we sa li fe pou pitit li?  Mesi Bon Dye!"  (Oh my gosh!  God is good!!  What a great God I serve.  Look what He has done for his child!  Thanks be to God!!")

While it's less likely that a lost item will be found and returned in Haiti, there still seems to be a bigger generosity of spirit in Haiti.  Here in the States, the more someone has, the less likely s/he is to share with others.  Or, if he shares, it will only be a small percentage of his wealth and will in no way affect his standard of living.  But in Haiti, someone living with little to nothing will gladly share whatever he has with any friend or stranger.  It's baffling!

So, what makes us so different?  Is it a difference born of culture or genetics?  Or maybe, is it that folks in desperate situations see things differently?

Not Good News

Yesterday, I got the news I've been waiting almost four years to hear; an answer from the Gates Foundation about our grant proposal.  It was a "no."

I wasn't too surprised, since nothing financially ever seems to work out for me or my family.  But, it was the end of a dream (sometimes, you can't help dreaming......)

Now, I'm trying to figure out what I'm going to do next.  I had kind of put my life on hold while I waited to see what would happen with the grant.  In addition to helping thousands of young people in Haiti, the grant would have provided me with a job I love.  We Americans certainly have a lot of "rights," but a guarantee for a job we love, isn't one of them!  And it looks like I'll be back to office work or burger flipping!

I'm sitting on our deck overlooking the Pacific ocean, listening to the waves crash onto the shore.  As soon as Eddy wakes up, we are leaving Oregon and heading to Napa Valley.  So what am I whining about?  This has been a great vacation so far.  We spent a wonderful couple of days in Seattle with good friends, Mary and Jeremy.  Their baby, Gavin, is a delight!  In addition to making friends with Gavin, we sure ate some good food; Indian, Korean, Chinese, and Vietnamese.

I'm not really in much of a blogging mood.... but it has been so long since my last post, I just wanted to put a little something down.  More later.....