Everyone always says children are a gift. But to a single woman whose chances of having her own kids have pretty much gone out the window, other people's kids are maybe the greatest gift of all.
I have the blessing to somehow have the love of 6 children, and the honor of being able to invest in the lives of 4 more through organizations like Compassion International.
All in all, my 10 kids are in 6 different countries and only 2 of them live close enough to me that I get to see them about once a week. But they are constantly in my heart.
There's Rose who is 17 and lives in Haiti. I've never met her but I've been sponsoring her for about 6 years now. Sometimes I get letters from her thanking me for the goat I gave her for Christmas or her birthday. I get the sense that out of all of my kids, life is hardest for Rose. She is only in 5th grade and she implores me in all of her letters to pray that she will be smarter. I tell her in my letters to keep trying, to not give up, to not get pregnant and to stay in school. And I pray for her, probably more fervently than I do for the others.
Next is Graham. He's 16 and he lives in Canada. I'm visiting him this week. I've known Graham since his mom was 12 weeks pregnant with him. Yesterday I watched him drive a car, all the while thinking of the little baby who used to crawl after me wherever I went when I was 17. My bond with Graham is strong and I am so proud of the young man he's becoming and that he still lets me hug him.
After that comes Thomas, also Canadian. He's 14 and he has the unique distinction of also being my godson. I'm not totally sure what that really means, except that I try to stay on top of his life and ask him questions and pray fervently for him too. Not really a hugger at this stage, but he did let me hit his arm when I got here on Thursday. Thomas is creatively brilliant. He designs and builds things and has been that way his whole life. And he is always up for adventure.
After Thomas is Estrella. I think she just turned 12. She's one of my newest kids and she lives in the Dominican Republic. I started sponsoring her right before I went there in November and got to meet her when I was there. I don't know much about her yet, but my heart has never been so full as it was when she was playing the recorder for our group with the other kids and she kept popping her head out from the back row to make sure I could see her. Then she came and found me and stood snuggled against me for the rest of the time we were there. She's a bit sassy, I think, in addition to sweet, which make her a girl after my own heart.
Dylan is next. He's 11 and the youngest of the Canadian boys. When they moved here he was only a year old and I was convinced that any kind of relationship with him would be a long shot because he didn't have memories of me the way the older boys did. But Dylan has been a delightful surprise. We have been blessed with an incredibly sweet relationship that confounds all logic. Out of all of the boys, he is the one who wants to Skype throughout the year and the one who snuggles with me the most and who plays games with me and tells me he loves me about 20 times a day. He is my heart melter.
Next up is Mariceli. She is 10 and she lives in Peru. I met her about a year and a half ago while leading a mission trip. She's the girl equivalent of Dylan when it comes to heart melting. She only speaks Spanish but that doesn't stop her from calling me every few months and chattering to me about her life and her dog and her family. She told me to never forget her when I was leaving and so far I haven't. It is a unique privilege to have been given the gift of her love and I've been touched to see how her parents also recognize the sweet bond we have and they make the financial sacrifice to let her call me every once in awhile. She was a sweet surprise to my mix.
Next up are Laurette and Farrah. They aren't twins but they look like they could be and they are both 8 years old. Laurette lives in the Congo and Farrah lives in Haiti. I am helping both of them go to school. They are still young and full of hope but both face incredibly overwhelming futures and obstacles. More than anything, my prayer for these baby girls is that they will be spared rape and molestation and AIDS, even though the odds are not in their favor. My heart often feels heaviest for them.
Gwennie comes next. She's 3 and hands down the light of my life. Her mom texted me yesterday to share with me that Gwennie had just announced that , "I love Daddy, I love Mommy, I love myself, I love Robin, and I love my doctor." What an honor to have made that list! Gwennie lights up the room and it is no small thing to have been blessed with a secure place in her heart. She also is the chief recipient of lots of international toys. It's good to have a child to buy things for when I'm out of the country.
Last but not least is my new niece Sophie. She will be 11 weeks on Monday and she doesn't have a clue yet who I am but she is quite content to sleep in my arms. Her birth defined me in a new way. She made me an aunt, something I have never been before.
My friend Candace got to meet Sophie the other day and she remarked that it's so important for children to have an adult in their lives who adores them and thinks they're awesome and who is not one of their parents. But I think it's even more important for that adult to have those kids.
I'm pretty sure I would be a lousy parent. I'm impatient and selfish and independent, and it's possible God has not been amiss in not giving me my own. But I love that He has given me other people's children to love and know and invest in. And I love that other people let me love their children.
"He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap; he seats them with princes, with the princes of their people. He settles the barren woman in her home as the happy mother of children." - Psalm 113:7-9
