Little Anna

Have you ever seen the face of a child and felt an instant connection? Or looked at a child and fallen in love without even knowing who they are? Or what about felt as though your heart had been captivated by the sweetness of a child? As much as I love children this doesn't happen to me very often. But a few months ago I experienced it with a little girl named Anna. I am on a personal mission to find this precious girl a home! Is she not amazingly sweet? What is it about her that makes me want to scoop her up and kiss her?

She is 2 years old and waiting for a family to come and rescue her. I look at Heidi almost daily now and see Anna. My heart aches that she is waiting for daily hugs and kisses. She does have Down Syndrome and is waiting in the Ukraine. What makes this situation even more gut wrenching is she has a beautiful mother who adores her. From what I have read her mother visits her nearly every week. She takes her for walks, picks her flowers, holds her and has to leave again. There are no programs, no therapies for children in the Ukraine with special needs so her only chance at really thriving is to be adopted.

Here is a picture of her with her mother. I cry almost every time I look at it. Mark and I did a little investigating last week to see if there was any possibility we could bring both Anna and her mother here. We were hopeful that her mother (if willing) would be able to get a visa, come here to work, live with us until she got settled (however long that took) and be able to raise her daughter. We were told that she has relinquished all parental rights, Anna has been cleared for international adoption and that was the end of that! I cried! I so badly wanted it to work!

Now, I know some of you who are reading this are probably thinking that this is not a new scenario - a mother loving her child so much that she is willing to watch them walk out of her life in order that they may live. But I have cried so many tears over this. I cannot imagine how hard it would be to place your daughter into another woman's arms and believe that they could even begin to love them a fraction of the amount you love them.

And I am left wrestling with so many things. Things that I have a hard time even writing because they sound so selfish. Want to know why I am hesitant to scoop Anna up and bring her home? Because it would be hard - at least I think so. Because special needs is something I am not used to. Because we could possibly always have a child living with us even when we are older.

But what God has been speaking to me through the past few weeks as I have cried and wrestled with my own self is that in His eyes there are no special needs. In His eyes we are all created perfect! That Anna is made in His image just as I am. And when I hear my boys ask to bring her home I weep.

So, as we head to mountains for a few days with our kids (yeah!!) I will continue to pray for this sweet cherub! And I am very hopeful that she will not be without a family for too much longer!! She is precious beyond words!