Louisiana writes her newest friend in Alaska a letter after meeting her at an adoption picnic held last Sunday.
Friday, September 3, 2004~
Dear Anna Arnette:
Thank you for writing to me; it was a pleasure meeting you and Bob and the children as well! What a beautiful looking bunch you have! It is nice to hear from you!
Thank you, too, for telling me more about your children. I shall do the same. Maybe I will not mention all of my kids (there are just too many! LOL), but I WILL mention as many as I possibly can! Here goes:
Ronee' and Johnny, they are the two we have had the longest. We have had Johnny and Ronee' for over 10 years now: they were just a few months old when they first came to our home--and into our hearts--, and they have only managed to grow under our guidance, love, and caring after doctors gave up hope on both of them. Both were born very premature: Johnny weighed only 2 pounds, and his sister, a pound and three ounces; and doctors didn't give them either much in the way of hope. Now they are 11, and they are winning hearts with their message of hope and courage in the face of incredible tragedy or disability, and they have touched people with their will to live.
Johnny has Duchenne's muscular dystrophy which was diagnosed at about the time he was learning to walk, and doctors didn't think he would live to be five; but here he is, 11 1/2, and still going strong! Ronee', his sister, meanwhile, usually uses forearm crutches, but since she broke her arm about three and a half weeks ago in a fall she had, she has had to use her wheelchair, and a lot of her activities have been seriously curtailed. She has juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, bronchial asthma, and allergies; but as she grows older, I am happy to say that a lot of her allergies are going away, and she doesn't seem to be having as much trouble.
After Johnny and Ronee' are Richard (has a trache because of abuse he suffered at the hands of his mother; he was also born with a cleft palate, which explains his speech difficulties), Michael (epilepsy) and his biological sister, Stephanie (not disabled), Gemini (epilepsy), Jodie (severe spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy and profound mental retardation), Anh (had cancer; has since been miraculously Healed by our Lord God!), Lightning (spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy, but isn't nearly as affected as Jodie is), Melizza (suffered a stroke at the age of 13; partially paralyzed on one side, has some leftover speech difficulties, also has emotional problems in which she continues to receive therapy for), and Porter (has some mild learning disabilities; otherwise he is all boy and is remarkably healthy; always has been!).
The other children eventually followed. There's sibling group Sunshine Lee and her twin brother, Andre' (Sunshine is healthy; Andre' had polio as a baby and is dependent on forearm crutches and leg braces for walking), and their older sister, Starlight Melody, who has juvenile diabetes; Barbara Le-Anne (Barbara is healthy, but for a while, she was our resident tomboy and tried our patience a time or two! LOL Thankfully, those days are behind us, and she has since blossomed into a beautiful young lady!), Gisele (non-disabled), sibling group Summer Song (learning-disabled) and her twin younger sisters Tammi Anne (non-disabled) and Camey Elisabet (epilepsy, some learning difficulties), Mario (had meningitis as a baby that left him hearing impaired; he communicates through SEE [signing exact English]), Sun-Hee (born with cataracts; had corneal transplant at age one and a half; is now partially sighted, but depends on a cane for feeling her way around), Enriquesa (born an achondroplastic dwarf; also born without legs and arms), Monica (non-disabled), Tri (learning difficulties; also somewhat developmentally delayed, but is otherwise very healthy), Jo-El (burned as an infant, now carries scars over 80% of his body; faces more reconstructive surgeries and skin grafts in the future, also lost his hands in the fire; requires the use of prosthetic hands), Rhiannon (cystic fibrosis), Christiana (non-disabled), Gloria and her older sister Keisha (both non-disabled), Trude (non-disabled), Sergei (some learning difficulties), Michelle and her twin sister Megan (both non-disabled), Roberto (Down's syndrome; spastic diplegic cerebral palsy, heart problems), Kwame' Joseph (heart problems), Sylvia Amobiye (non-disabled), Jeraldo Miguel (non-disabled), Danita (non-disabled), Benjamin (hearing-impaired, uses ASL to communicate), Deborah (born with spina bifida, born without arms or hands, also oxygen dependent due to severe breathing problems and allergies), Jamie (born with spina bifida; paralyzed from waist on down; uses forearm crutches and leg braces for walking), and Tran (non-disabled). Of course, I neglected to mention some of the kids, but that was unintentional, and besides, my memory isn't as sharp as it used to be (think having grandkids has fried my brain! LOL)!
My kids come from a variety of places: Asia (Vietnam, Korea, China, India), Europe (Germany, the Netherlands, Bosnia, France), the Middle-East (Iran), South and Central America (Nicaragua, Guatemala), Mexico, Canada, and the United States of America. But I have no Alaskans, I am sorry to say! LOL Closest TO Alaska were the two Canadian siblings Stephanie and Michael! LOL
Yet despite their obvious differences or racial backgrounds, my kids are all united by adoption, and they are now part of a family that will never break apart; and they know now what it is like to have a home and to be loved and accepted. They have passed our greatest dreams and expectations, and they have survived incredible odds; and they never cease to amaze one and all with their will to live and their courage.
They are the family we have always dreamed about ever since we lost our own three biological children, and although they will never replace Pierre, L'Acadia, or Aron, they have made the bearing of our grief a lot easier to cope with, and they are our biggest support system whenever their birthdays or anniversary of their deaths come calling; and they make the pain and loss a lot easier to bear.
Well, Anna, I have bent your ear long enough, so I will write more when I can. Besides, the little ones are calling for some food; they are hungry! I will write more later, when I can spare some extra time. Until then, you take care, and thanks for writing! I shall look forward to hearing from you again!
God bless you and your beautiful Rainbow Family! You are always in my heart and in my prayers!
In His Service,
Lovingly,
Your friend in Tennesee, Louisiana Mayrah. :)
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Reviewed by Rusty Nowlin
9/7/2023
Karen:
I never responded to your kind comment on my article about illegal immigration. I've been writing for nearly 50 years and am nearly 72. I would guess that you might be considerably younger. Here is my email for your convenience:
(r u s t y n o w l i n 1 9 5 1 @ y a h o o. com) I, like you, am a conservative independent, but greatly favor Donald Trump for reelection in 2024. Most of my published writing is on the Internet and in newspapers. I have written over 400 essays and articles, some of which are on EzineArticles.com. I grew-up in Tyler, Texas and entered the USMC there in 1971, went to Vietnam for six months, and ended 6 years in 1977. My LinkedIn resume is under my pen name, Norton R. Nowlin, on the Internet.
Please get back in contact with me. I would enjoy reading some of your "Tornado" writing and getting to know you better. I hope you respond by email.
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Friday, September 3, 2004~
