Vision of Heaven

Over the past 2 years we have received numerous emails from people who met Teresa in The Half The Sky Orphanage .    Some were there volunteering , others were there visiting the Orphanage. But everyone that met Teresa was captured by her amazing personality .
I thought I would share a few of their stories with you and how Teresa touched their lives .

One family met Teresa while they were visiting the Orphanage -

"We will all never forget the little "attitude" of this tiny person.

I will always remember her leaning against the wall with one hand, clutching a small panda bear with her little hand, legs crossed while she was giving some other child a tongue lashing, turned and marched off."

This family was touched by Teresa's personality and spunk .  They go on to say that meeting Teresa made them realize there may be another child destined to be in their family and that she  "opened the window" for this calling.

   "We owe , in part,our daily joy with our daughter to Liu Fang (Teresa). 

The funny thing is , this tongue lashing still continues today .  Except now in English . Teresa is one driven little girl who knows exactly want she wants  .

Another person wrote me a while ago telling me of her experience while volunteering in the Half The Sky orphanage;

She tells how Teresa  became her friend .  She was shy at first but quickly earned her trust .  The two of them spent most days playing and were inseparable.  

 She also was enchanted by Teresa's personality . 

The common feeling by all who wrote us to share their story of Teresa is how amazing she was and how she captured their attention with her magical personality .

Her "magical " personality was also how Jenny Bowen (Founder of Half THe Sky ), described her  .

We knew from the moment we met Teresa that she was different .    Some say she is "an Old Soul", able to comprehend more than her years. Others  have said she has a "sparkle" about her , very loving and compassionate  . And to be honest some have had no desire to get to know her further when they see her "Sassy " side .  And for  them I feel sad that they did not look  deeper and get to know her .

For us , her strong desire to have a family and totally embrace  everyone melted our hearts.  She has an ability to understand situations (her heart condition, wanting a family , orphans, heaven , Jesus,) on a level not typical for a 6 year old.  A few weeks ago we were talking about Heaven and Gemma said when she gets to heaven she was going to eat chocolate all day long .  Teresa waited a minute, as I could tell she was thinking, and  said" Well when I get to heaven , Jesus said I could wear my wedding dress and pick flowers all day long and not get in trouble ". ( She LOVES flowers and all summer was constantly picking the flowers in my garden  and getting in trouble for it ) . I asked her when Jesus had told her this  and she said " the other day ".      Most days she is a typical 6 year old playing dress up , demanding someone else be the prince because she was going to be the princess, picking her favorite song to sing on the karaoke machine and  deciding what we all should have for dinner  ( of course her first pick is ALWAYS Chinese noodles).  Her favorite word is "FABULOUS" and her favorite  color ,you guessed it , PINK.  The more her clothes sparkle the better . 

The one experience that really shows Teresa's personality and her Iron will to overcome all her obstacles , succeed and to never give up is the video of her learning to stand for the first time by herself.

The first time I watched this video  I cried because she was struggling to get up and she kept looking for someone to help her.  But no one helped her , she had to learn how to do it on her own .  Not having two arms to push up with she figured out that she would have to put her bottom against the wall, use her arm and her head  to push up  and using the wall for balance.  She eventually did it all by herself and gave everyone the "thumbs up " for succeeding !

This is who Teresa is .  She still never gives up with anything she tries. She never takes no for an answer. She has an iron will to live and continues to defy  all medical odds.  She never asks "Why Me?".  She enjoys all life has to offer  and can not wait for the day when she can wear her wedding dress and pick flowers all day long with Jesus .