Crazy Guest Blogger #10 – A Grandpa’s Love 4 Adoption
“How do you fall in love with a picture?”
That is the question Kari Gibson asked after she had seen an on line photograph of Zoie, who is now a part of Gibsons’ “forever family.”
Our daughter Rebecca Blitch and her husband Vernon could have asked the same question. Their several years quest to find a child ended when they saw pictures of Yonatan and Fetlework on a web site. The children were half a planet away, in Ethiopia. They hadn’t considered two ‘til then.
Excitement, fear, and a thousand what if’s. Can there be too many grandchildren? Carol and I think not.
Nearly fifty years ago when we were expecting our second child it seemed our hearts were so full. “Could there be room for another?”
God expanded those hearts many times. Two more children and a bunch’a grandchildren later it seemed our heart expansion time had come to an end. God wasn’t finished.
How does one describe the past three and a half years? Like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz the memories whirl ‘round, spin out the top and are replaced by others.
Hugs and frowns; walking and looking for wildlife; planting watering and harvesting in the garden; helping Memaw in the kitchen; learning vocabulary; Ethiopian dance by the fire; sliding at ‘Whitewater; swimming in the cold creek; queen waves.
More hugs…………are there ever enough?
Memaw teaching Fetle to sew; Yonatan in a world all his own, dancing his happy Ethiopian shoulder dance. Swinging on the big rope swing.
Soccer and basketball, victories and………….sometimes not.
Cuts and bruises; snuggling on the sofa; hair braiding; special times eating Ethiopian cuisine.
Field trips and grandparents day lunch at school.
Like a balloon that will never burst the expansion continues. Will there be more?……………….
Ain’t God good?
Charlie
http://www.justlovecoffee.com/EthiopianChild
http://www.ethiopianchild.org
Wanted to make sure you know that we are heading to India and the t-shirt sales covered ALL our hotel expenses like I prayed for!!!! Thank you SO MUCH for doing this fundraiser! What a blessing for us!!!
Jenny
What a post! I love your perspective as a Grandparent!
We've been blessed to watch our parents be amazing grandparents to all of the children in our family! I'll never forget my mom during our adoption process and watching her come to understand the process and start to love a little girl we had yet to see or meet!
Thanks for sharing.
Loved this post! What a SWEET grandpa! There seems to always be room for one more!
Sherrie
Every child deserves some grandparents like you! How sweet! Thank you for sharing!
We need more grandparents like Charlie to stand up and CHEER for adoption! Charlie is not only a great grandpa, but he also makes frequent trips to ET on his own to advocate for orphans. I wonder how many more kids would have a mommy & daddy if grandparents would "cheer", then "frown" on adoption? Great post, Charlie! And your grandchildren are awesome!
AMESEGNALEHU (thank you) for the kind words, those who commented. We are SO BLESSED to be able to learn from our beautiful Ethiopian grandchildren.
Charlie