October 8th

This morning 11 year old Maely experienced one of those firsts in life that we would all like to forget...her first trip to a dentist.  I for one, remember in vivid detail my first trip to the dentist...it was a terrifying experience that may have emotionally scarred me for life.  Did I mention I was eighteen at the time?  Anyway, Maely's first dental appointment was one that the rest of us could only dream about.  She went in with a tooth ache, and came out an hour later with one less baby tooth and one less impacted molar.  She also had no pain, AND also scored a rubber ball and a water gun to boot...more on the water gun later!  Anyway thanks to the extreme kindness of Dr. Chamberlain and the Creekside Dental Clinic, Maely no longer has to live with the constant pain of a toothache and risk the complications that would have developed from this condition later on.   So here are pictures of Maely's first visit to a dentist.

A little apprehensive...perhaps?

The before picture..Dr. Chamberlain obviously has put her mind at ease..

And the after picture...there is nothing wrong with her left eye....its just camera glare.

Okay, so now about the water gun.  I didn't accompany Pat and Maely on this trip to the Dentist so when they got back home, I could hear them whispering among themselves but couldn't hear what they were saying.....now that should have been my first clue that something was up.  I mean, lets face it, when women whisper....it never turns out good for us guys!  The second clue...(which I also failed to recognize) was when my wife (of 33 years, 10 months, and 12 days) called sweetly and said, "Honey, can you come into the kitchen?"  Now our anniversary is coming up next month, aqnd I was anxious to please my wife so I could possibley sweet talk her into renewing my contract for another year.  With those thoughts in my mind,  I came around the corner into the kitchen completely oblivious to the fate that awaited me!  Suddenly, without warning, I was mercilessly ambushed by an 11 year old with a water gun whose deadly aim would have made a Marine Sniper proud.  The first shot caught me square in the eye!  As I threw my hands up in a defensive posture, I took two more hits in the shoulder.  All of this of course was accompanied by the same peals of laughter that still haunted me from my near death experience with the John Deere mower the day before.  The worst of it was that my loving wife who lured me into the ambush had a camera waiting and captured the following photo.

Tomorrow, Pat, Maely and I will travel to Seattle to spend the night with our oldest Daughter Niki and her husband Justin.  Sunday we will catch a flight to Los Angeles where we will hand off our precious cargo to the Mending Kid International (MKI) social worker (Cristina Farrut) and the host family that will be taking care of Maely for the next 2 to 3 months as she undergoes surgery and rehabilitation. 

Let me share with you a story about how MKI came to be involved in Maely's life.  Almost a year ago, out of the blue, I got an e-mail from the man that baptised me in the Gulf of Mexico almost 37 years ago.  His name is Jack Chew and him and his wife Linda now live on the outskirts of San Antonio Texas.  They are heavily involved in social work with the children of illegal immigrants who are being detained or seeking asylum in the US.  I had not heard from Jack in over 30 years and was surprised to hear from him after so long a time.  Prior to recieving Jack's e-mail, Pat and I had been searching for several months for an organization that could provide the corrective surgery that Maely needed.  A few days after I had re-established contact with Jack, we were e-mailing each other back and forth and I happened to mention our search for an organization that could provide corrective surgery for Maely's condition.  It just so happened, Jack was watching a special on television about an organization called Mending Kids International when he got my e-mail, so he sent me a note back suggesting that we look into MKI.  I looked them up online and a few days later, submitted Maely's story along with video clips we took on our trip to her village the year before.   To make a long story short, MKI accepted her case and has done a tremendous job in coordinating the multitude of details necessary to make this happen.  I have been very impressed with their mission, their organization but most of all with their people who really care about making a difference in our world.  Please be lifting this organization up in your prayers as they continue to be the hands of God in ministering to the needs of HIS children around the world.  Take a look at their website and see what God would have you to do to support them.  www.mendingkids.org/

If we have time tomorrow, I want to tell you what Maely's has told us about her life in the village of Potenciana.  I will warn you ahead of time, you will need to keep a box of kleenex close by.  I just hope I can write the story without letting my tears short out my keyboard.