Awesome Agnes

We call her Awesome Aggie because she is so amazing in so many ways.  I can't imagine my life without the wonderful relationship I have with this gifted child.  She is just all heart...love, love, love.  She gives it freely and lavishly, and she receives it just as graciously.  There is nothing that can pick up my day like an Agnes hug...they are world-class.

Oh, and I have to confess, as her mama, I am thoroughly and completely obsessed with her cheeks.

Have you ever seen such lovely apple cheeks in all your life?  This is not make-up...that is how they really look!  It's probably a good thing I did not have her as a baby because I surely would have kissed those cheeks raw.

Here is how she looked the day I met her.  I will never forget how she greeted me...with the strength and courage of a woman at the tender age of 13. 

 

Her hands and feet were calloused from years of hard labor in the orphanage...her chore was to help the matrons do the laundry for the over 500 children who lived with her.  Her strong back and strong spirit saved her from many of the trials she endured.  Loneliness, hunger, rejection and disappointment did not break her spirit.  She dreamed of a family and she dreamed of being a doctor. 

Her gifts of mercy and compassion are like none I have seen.  She loves anything and anyone that is vulnerable:  animals, babies, old people.  These gifts were honed while caring for her invalid grandmother and years and years of hundreds of children.  She was one of the first children to live at the orphanage, when there were only a few children, and there was only tea for food.

 

But God was working in those many years, preparing her for her future dream of becoming a doctor.  Agnes plans to become a Family Practicioner.  We are so fortunate that she is able to attend a special high school where she is already learning medicine.  She meets the bus early each morning, ready in her scrubs for the long ride.  (again with the cheeks...)

 

 

She talks of returning to Uganda, building a hospital, and saving many lives.  Is it any wonder that God brought her into our family so she could be on this path of healing and mercy?  She is a joy to all who know her, especially her blessed family. 

 

 I often look forward to that day when her dad and I will sit at her medical school graduation (how old will we be by then?)  What an awesome day that will be...knowing where she came from, and also where she is going and how God will use her.

 

Read more about Agnes, her writings and her story at her very own web site:  http://aggiegiftedhands.weebly.com/