inspiration

A little while ago i wrote about the Summerfields, a missionary family that has been taking care of a one year old little boy named Angelito for almost a year now. The Summerfields want to adopt him but they are over the age limit to adopt in Bolivia. We have all been a little on edge this summer because a family was found for Angelito and all they need is a court hearing and they will be able to take him. The court day has been pushed back several times for different reasons, which gives us all hope that he might actually be able to stay with the Summerfields. This last time the court date got postponed it was due to the fact that all the adoption judges in Bolivia quit and there is no one to replace them quickly.

This past Sunday was a difficult Sunday. The family that wants to adopt Angelito has been getting anxious to meet him and spend time with him and they were given permission by the director of the orphanage that Angelito came from to come to our church and meet him for the first time (even though they technically were not allowed to have contact until the judge reviewed them and gave permission to go forward). it was a very hard situation because i am sure that this new family has really been struggling with not being able to get the son that they have been hoping for, yet the Summerfields are still praying that they will be able to keep him and had to watch a new family hold him and play with him.

Through all of this though i have been very inspired by the faith and parenting of Lori Summerfield, the mother. They can't have children biologically so they have two adopted children from Peru. The story of their other two children is just as difficult to hear with them spending months in Peru, having the children taken away from them at one point and finally getting them back underfed and weak. And now they caring for this new little boy who has nobody. its hard to grasp the fact that there are women in this world who can have children so easily, yet don't want them and then there are women like Lori who desperately want to be mothers and have to go through hoops and regulations to be a mother to children who don't have anyone. Through all of this Lori is always hopeful and always thankful to God for allowing her to care for Angelito. She is never bitter about the circumstances and it is inspiring to watch her enjoy every moment with him. To me she is the perfect role model of what a mother should be, being there for a child no matter what, whether she has two more weeks with him or eighteen years.