Louisiana writes to her friend in Denton, Texas, after Eileen wrote to her.
Dear Eileen in Texas~
Thanks for your letter; it was good to hear from you again!
This letter won't be long; we are leaving within the hour (two at the most) to go to a neighbor's child's wake at the funeral home closest to our home. Our next door neighbor's child died on Thursday of kidney failure. He lived with serious medical problems all his young life; he was awaiting his third kidney transplant; he was just too sick--and much too weak--to survive much longer. He would have been fourteen years old next month on September 11th.
Opri's death hit us very hard; he was a very likable and personable young man who didn't let his problems stand in his way. He was a beacon of courage and hope, and he hardly ever cried or complained about his lot in life.
Of course, his mamma, Maria, and his younger sister, Jacqueline, are devastated; I can't imagine the hell they must be going through at this time. Or maybe I can: I know how it is to lose a child; fact is, I lost all three of my birth children. They would have been teenagers in high school or college had they lived; two of them died when they were but tiny babies, and the third one died on what would have been his fourth birthday.
The one baby died of SIDS at the age of six days (Pierre Armand); the other two from meningitis at the ages of four years (Aron Jakob) and two weeks and two days (L'Acadia Marie-Antoinette). I still miss them now, all these years later; and I still cry whenever I think of them.
Maria Johnson has had it rough: she is a single parent, and she raised two children on her own. The father left shortly after Jacqueline, the youngest, was born; she was born blind, and daddy Johnson couldn't handle the fact that his youngest child was born handicapped; so he ran out on the family. Opri, the older child, also had his health problems: he was born with kidney problems, and he had transplants at the ages of five and ten. He would have had his third transplant surgery in a few weeks, but he mercifully died. He was very ill, and there was no way he could have survived much longer than he did.
I am glad that I could answer your questions, Eileen. Hopefully the information I gave you will be most helpful. Some of the sites you can visit on the Internet are www.adopt.com or the website for "Adoptive Families" Magazine. Yes, the whole process of starting the adoption journey is overwhelming, especially the home study, when you have (rude) strangers asking questions or perusing through your house, to make sure you are the ideal candidates for a particular child; but it is part of the process.
The waiting is very difficult too, but all you can do is pray and hope that you are chosen. When you are, and you finally get "The Call", to tell you that you are getting the child in which you desired, then all this other mess is worth it in the end. It is akin to having a baby when you first see or meet your adopted child, and all the tears or hardships you faced prior make it all worth it in the end.
I am sorry the weather is bad there, in terms of the heat. I wish I could send you some of the rain or cooler temperatures, but no, that stubborn high wants to keep Texas in a death grip. I am praying for relief for you guys; I just hope you get it before it is too late (of which it already may be for some parts of sunbaked Texas).
Thanks, too, for the prayers for Johnny and Ronee'; they could use them now! Johnny goes into the hospital on Monday, and he has his muscle biopsy test done later that afternoon. He will be in the hospital a few days afterwards, so the doctors can keep a close eye on him. He has had some medical crises arise; this is why they want to keep him in for a few days (plus it takes some time to recover from the minor surgery he will be having).
Ronee' is doing a little better; but she is still in pain, and she is hobbling around like a wounded soldier on her crutches. She is devastated at her friend's death, and we all are, actually. Opri was very well loved by not only Ronee', but all of us. He was a very good kid. He will be missed, that is for darn sure!
Well, Eileen, I am going to leave now. We are getting ready to go now. We will go out for a bite to eat before heading for the funeral home. The wake is from 1 to 4 this afternoon; we have to be there for our neighbor and friend in her time of grief! It is only the right thing to do!
Take care, and God bless! Enjoy the books, and if you have any questions, call me or contact me at my e-mail addy! Either way, I will respond as soon as I can!
(((HUGS))) and much love, your friend in Tennessee, Louie May Sandusky. :( >tears<
Amazing write here Karen, you described the emotions well, write on and be blessed in the writing, I give you five stars for an amazing write
God Bless
Michelle~
Louie sure knows how to put pen to paper, and describe with vivid clarity and emotion, all her pent up feelings and sentiments..
Worrying times indeed..
Reflections and Nature Watercolors is a collection of Margaret's spontaneous positive thoughts in celebrating and reflecting on life and her nature watercolors.
From the Caribbean Sea to Machu Picchu in Peru, and from birds to flowers and butterflies, Reflections and Treasured Wonders offers a collection of images gathered from around the world.
