a poem

Some would gather money

Along the path of life,

Some would gather roses,

And rest from worldly strife.

But I would gather children

From among the thorns of sin,

I would seek an ebony curl,

And a freckled, toothy grin.

For money cannot enter

In that land of endless day,

And roses that are gathered

Soon will wilt along the way.

But oh, the laughing children,

As I cross the sunset sea,

And the gates swing wide to heaven

I can take them in with me!

author unknown

One step closer....

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope
without wavering, for He who promised is faithful
Hebrews 10:23

As we continue to wait and wait and wait for our precious children to come home, I must admit that I find myself tempted to put my hope in a phone call from Acres of Hope , news of passports being approved on the AOH message board or in some other tangible sign that the adoption is progressing forward. How kind of the Lord to remind me the other morning as I read the verse above that my hope can not be placed in the things of this world. My hope must be in an unchanging God, a faithful Father who knows even the number of hairs upon my head and my words before I speak them...My hope is in the unfailing nature of His character; His sovereignty, goodness and wisdom. He is all together perfect and wise and knows the perfect timing to bring Mercy and Odesco home! I have found great comfort in that as the time continues to slip by ~ Our days are full with homeschooling, piano lessons, soccer and coop...little time to wallow :)

We did have some happy news last week.:)..we received word of Mercy's passport approval and we also received the elusive adoption documents that we have been waiting for since July 24th ,all in the same day!!...We truly are one step closer! We are still awaiting Odesco's passport approval, the final INS approval and then visas can be applied for. After that, flights are booked. How long might this take?? We truly have no idea! It could be a few days or it could be weeks~
We still do not know which airport they will fly into Our plan now is to drive our 12 passenger van with all 4 kids to meet their new siblings, wherever they fly into. Obviously, it would be a LOT more convenient to travel to an airport in close proximity but even this is in the Lord's hands and we need to trust Him to work out all the details.

Remembering that He who promised is faithful,
Momma B

A Bit of Perspective...

This compelling description of life in Liberia was found on Liberianministries.org
It is quite an eyeopener and definately gives a sense of what life has been like for the people of Liberia for so many years. On a positive note, things are improving with the new President in place. I read recently that the city of Monrovia had its first traffic light installed as well as running water! Realistically though, it will take years of reparations to restore stability to the infrastructure of this country. How blessed I am...and how much I take for granted!( FYI: The country of Liberia is roughly the same size as the state of Tennessee...that is why the comparison between the two is made.)

Imagine for a moment the state of Tennessee and its capitol city Nashville. Now imagine that, other than privately owned generators, there is no electrical power in the entire state, no running water and no sanitation services. Except for Nashville, where some cell phone coverage is available if you can afford it, there are no communications of any kind available other than to the very few that can afford the $1,000 cost to purchase a satellite phone and the $1 per minute to use it. Also understand that a job, such as a certified school teacher, pays $20 per week or less.

"As you walk down the streets look at all the high rise buildings and imagine that most of the windows are shattered from automatic weapons fire, that the upper floors are abandoned because there is no electricity to power the elevators and because the businesses that once used them have fled the state. As you walk down the streets there are bullet holes in every building, street sign and utility pole. Many of the buildings you pass are burned out but have been reclaimed by street vendors and others, at least on the first floor. Each person you meet on the street, all 1.5 million of them, has one or more relatives that have been killed by rebels within the past ten years.

"Imagine that, if you can find a car or truck going, it takes 15 or more hours to reach Memphis. If your tire fails on the way there is nowhere to buy another except in Nashville. In the city of Nashville people live in shacks built in back alleys and against buildings. Everything that they need, food, water, clothing, must be purchased and yet 9 out of 10 people do not have a job. Most do menial tasks each day such as selling cold water, hauling goods long distances in a wheel barrow or selling food that they have prepared that morning. The goal in life is not to “get ahead” but to stay alive. Many (most) people in Nashville are hungry.

"Once you leave Nashville the situation changes. If you live near Knoxville or Chattanooga you are able to raise your own food. Of course you have to plant and harvest it first. Potatoes and turnips make up almost every day’s meal but, if you can hunt, there is the possibility of a raccoon, possum or ground hog from time to time.

"Think of every home in most towns outside Nashville having been burned and the families not killed being forced to flee into the woods to hide out. As they are hiding they are systematically being hunted and killed. Know that if you live outside of Nashville and have a serious injury you will likely die before you can get to a hospital. Besides, most of the doctors have left the state long ago.

"Now imagine that you can’t find your parents or perhaps your children. As you walk down the street you pass thousands of children whose parents were both slaughtered during the rebels’ killing march through the outer areas of the state as they converged upon the capitol city. They are orphaned. If they’re lucky they can find a relative to help them. But many are alone to fend for themselves or starve. There is no welfare system to rescue them, no school they can afford to attend and no place to learn a trade or business that will enable them to earn a living in the future. They are caught in a trap that will ensure the next generation of Liberians will be less literate, less prosperous and more likely to turn to crime than any in the past. If you can imagine all of this, you can imagine what it is like to live in Liberia."

"Meet" Odesco and Mercy !!

Odesco and Mercy

The following report was given to us by AOH...they recently hired a young woman who writes reports for the waiting families. What a gift to receive this updated photo and such candid descriptions of our new children!! It does this mommy heart good to see this picture ...much cheerier than the last one and to know they are spending time together on a regular basis. This is our first smiley picture of our sweet son!! Oh how we long to bring them home!!!!

Mercy: outgoing and rambunctious. Odesco: quiet and reserved. These two unrelated kids make quite a compatible sibling group. Mercy’s outgoing personality is balanced by Odesco’s calm and quite disposition. Whether interacting together, or with friends, Mercy and Odesco’s personalities really seem to work well together.

Mercy is a passionate little girl. If she’s happy, she’s very happy, often throwing herself at people and giving out hugs. If she’s upset, she’s really upset, pouting for long periods of time. Mercy has a sweet disposition and a transparent personality. She is very excited about her new white family and frequently asks me when it will be her time to go. Mercy is very energetic and loves playing games that require a lot of physical activity. But she’s also a girly-girl and enjoys wearing pretty dresses and shoes. Mercy talks a lot and always has something interesting or funny to say. (Hmmmm...sounds like someone else we know and love in the B family!!)

Odesco is a very quiet boy. Because of how quiet he is, it takes time to really figure out his personality. When interacting with other kids, Odesco is definitely a follower. He does not feel the need to compete with other kids for attention. He likes sitting quietly as other kids say funny things and do things to show off. He laughs along with them, but doesn’t seem to want to be like them. Odesco loves building-type toys. He would love to be able to make a car or a house out of Legos, or a similar toy (building toys are a hot commodity among the kids at the orphanage.) One of his favorite things to do is to sit quietly and design little houses with the jumbo blocks at the orphanage. All the B Boys have been Lego crazy lately so Odesco will fit right in. B4 will certainly need to curtail his chattiness so that Odesco can get a word or two in and we can get to know him :)!!