June 16, 2010

Dear Ones,
What a joy it is to once again share with you for just a few moments. Over the past several weeks so many of you have encouraged, listened, hugged, and spoiled me with your love and attention. Thank you! The weeks have flown past since my last letter to you, I can hardly believe where the time has gone. I have loved every moment of the time with my family, attempting to not only get some much needed rest but enjoy the time with them doing not only fun activities but also just the everyday stuff of life. First on the agenda of to do’s was see my doctors here and make sure that I was progressing well in the direction of recovery. I am pleased to tell you that your prayers have been effectual as all of my tests have come back negative and though I will still need to be very watchful for possible recurrences I am for the moment doing very well. Thank you!
While at home I had the opportunity to go on a couple short trips with my family. One was to Nashville where we all had the opportunity to meet the incredible staff at the Show Hope office and attend Steven Curtis Chapman’s production of Roger’s and Hammerstein’s Cinderella. What a delightfully beautiful evening it was. I cannot tell you how much it meant to me to have the chance to attend and have my family with me. I was actually able to meet and put faces with names and e-mails that I had from the Show Hope staff. How fun to get to know better the people in our Show Hope family that are in Nashville- time well spent strengthening a special bond as we all strive to work for the glory of God in the lives of these little ones. The other two very quick trips with my family were to attend weddings. I must admit the irony of that as I sit here in the airport reading my new copy of “Did I Kiss Marriage Goodbye?” In which the whole phenomenon of “wedding conversation” is discussed- you know the conversation I am talking about the, “Your next” or “So when are you going to settle down?” ones. Those of you who know me well know how much I love to be involved with weddings, the planning, decorating, preparations, photos, and the general “making it all work” end of things. Each one is special and each one gives me a new opportunity to be reminded that God is working on His plan and preparations in and for my life. I could not help but think about that as I sat through both weddings during these past couple of weeks. I remembered my home in China, I remembered the little ones I delight in caring for, I remembered the long nights of rocking babies, and the knocks on my door in the wee hours of the morning calling me to tend to a sick child. God has prepared me for such a time as this, and though at times it is harder than at others I am glad that God has given me this season of my gift- my gift of singleness.
During my break at Home in South Carolina I also had the opportunity to spend some special time with my Grandma as she came to visit us for a couple weeks and attend my cousin Phillip’s wedding in Atlanta with us. We were able to visit with extended family and enjoy special memories with them as well. There was also time for quite coffee in the morning with Mom, trips out on the boat with Dad, phone calls, park trips, and lunches with special friends. And then Time for Good Bye. Now I am on a rather unique journey back to Luoyang as there have been several flight changes and I have been routed from Savannah to Newark to San Francisco with an overnight, then on to Beijing tomorrow- Life is an incredible adventure and I am so grateful that God is such an awesome Navigator!
With love for each of you,
Mariah