Most of you that know me well, know that I am not a reader. (unless it's a celebrity gossip magazine with lots of pictures- if you can even call that reading(-:) However, from the very beginning of our adoption process, there was one book mentioned over and over as a "must read". My first thoughts were "Wow, this book sounds like it's made a big impact on many of its readers. I wish I could read a book!" Ok, so it wasn't that I couldn't read, I just dreaded the thought of reading an entire book to completion. But in reality, I deep down admired those book worms that would take the time to sit down w/ a good book. I loved the fact that you could learn SO much from reading, so much so that I would actually buy books that I "wanted" to read and give them to Luke to read on a long trip. Ha!
So defeating all odds, I was on a mission to buy this book and read it. Luke just chuckled. (probably thinking it was another book I was going to try to get him to read and then translate it to me) Well, I bought it and started to read it. I did have a hard time following along in the beginning-(it may have been the fact that I was on the beach and constantly interrupted with "Mommy, will you build a sandcastle with me or Mommy, I'm hungry...you get the picture) It was alot of history and statistics. But, just as I was confirming the reason why I never read, it started to grab my attention. I found myself with that book in my face almost every night, soaring through the pages and sobbing through many of them. I have never read a book that so profoundly touched my heart. (ok, so I haven't read a ton of books, but trust me, it was compelling)
Without giving it all away and allowing you to read it(-:, it is a story of Haregewoin Teferra, a middle class Ethiopian woman who found herself at the heart of a global health crisis- AIDS. After losing her husband and daughter and experiencing great grief, she reluctantly agreed to take in two of Addis Ababa's thousands of AIDS orphans. There was literally NO place for them to go-they were completely shunned. Soon children of all ages began to appear at her tin walled compound. She eventually started an orphanage and began facilitating adoptions to homes all over the world.
The story was extremely educational, heartbreaking and inspirational all at the same time. Each time I would pick it up, I was re-affirmed on our decision to adopt from Ethiopia. At heart, it was a book about children and parents, wherever they may be, however they may find eachother. I would handsdown recommend this book to everyone to read. And because of it, you may just find this "non reader" with another book in her hand at the beach this summer(-:
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