All is Grace

For the past few years I have purchased what has become known as the "family gift". Something that we can all do together as a family. One year it was a Whirly Pop popcorn popper, wooden popcorn bowl and a few DVD's to watch over vacation. One year it was RockBand (I got it for a steal as it was an older version of the instruments). As we head into Christmas this year, gifts have been a bit of a challenge to think about. We are going to Florida in March. The kids are going with the Band, and Neal and I are going as Chaperone's. We weren't going to originally, as even for just the two of us it's a lot of money, but we figured it's a chance of a lifetime and we likely won't get to do this again, so we are going for it. Part of the everyone's gift this year, is spending money for the strip. On top of that, we have to have our trip paid for by February. In light of that, I've been giving the family gift a lot of thought this year. The kids are getting older, and I've been finding that as they age, what they want and what they need and what they consider gifts is evolving and changing and it's hard as a parent to come to terms with.

It has been on my heart for a few months now, if not longer, to sponsor a child through Compassion International. It has been there, and stayed there, and every few weeks, I have gone and looked at the children that are waiting for a sponsor, and I have thought some more about it, and I have closed the page. Lately, though, I have gone every few days. I had some of my own specifications. It had to be a girl. She had to be very young: they are eligible for sponsorship at the age of 3, and I want to be able to sponsor her for a long, long time.  On top of all that, her photo had to speak to my heart. Last night, on a whim, I visited the site again, and I found Mariah. Mariah is from Guatemala and will turn 4 in February. She has the biggest, roundest eyes, and the saddest, little look on her face. Whoever took her photo seemed to capture her spirit just asking for someone to save her. How could I resist that? So this year, I will inform my people that in light of a family gift, we are going to help save this little girl, who is living in poverty in Middle America. This small child who likes to play with dolls, play ball games and run. Who's life will be just a little better, because we cared about her.