A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

We recently received an update from Samuel's orphanage. It included an email with a small amount of information and some precious pictures. We were given growth data and some answers to other questions. We may or may not be able to trust the validity of these answers but we were happy to hear, nonetheless. The pictures though... they were game changers.

I have to be honest. I've loved Samuel since the moment we saw him. I loved him right away because I knew God called him to be our son. But I never felt an emotional connection to his first pictures. So often, the pictures included in these kids' files look like mug shots. The children tend to look empty and stoic. It usually isn't until these children come home that an amazing transformation takes place. It's true that real love changes a person physically.

Whether or not he's receiving proper care, we'll never know. But these recent pictures show life in our boy's eyes. To see that smile, those 2 front teeth, those handsome features... melted my heart. We are one month in to our LOA wait and this new glimpse of Samuel now makes the wait harder. I am so very grateful for this new perspective that God has granted me. It may not seem like a big deal but these pictures are an amazing blessing for this family who, so desperately, wants to connect with our son. They are all we have right now.