I Meet the Best People at JC Penney!

i meet the greatest people at jcpenney!   that's where i met my good friend april, whose son is clayton!  our mutual occupational therapist had given me april's number, but we had not been able to connect yet.   we ran into each other there, and i immediately recognized clayton....i knew she had to be april!   clayton is 4 months younger than wyatt, and we have become fast friends....with that little something extra in common!

this week, while doing some Christmas shopping at jcpenney, i saw a young adult with Down syndrome shopping with his parents.  i immediately spoke to his mom....just "hi, how are you?"....trying to figure out what to say!   as i circled around the area where we were shopping, i was able to speak to his mom again...."i have a baby with Down syndrome" i said..... she immediately warmed up to me and we had a lovely conversation.  she told me he (wyatt) would be the biggest blessing of my life!   their son's name is nathaniel, and he is a sweet, courteous, precious 30 year old who loves to worship!   his mom told me that he even sings solos in church!   my encounter was such a blessing to me....such an encouragement!   i actually saw them again today after the old fashioned Christmas parade that wyatt and i rode in with my parents, in my dad's '31 model a!    i grabbed wyatt and "chased them down" to talk to them again!    they are an awesome Christian family.....i'm so glad i met them!

his mom told me that she was 21 when he was born.   he was born right here in the same hospital where wyatt was born.  at that same hospital they told his parents to put him in an institution. i praise God that no one said that to us when wyatt was born.  i can't even imagine.....

it's hard to imagine that parents in eastern europe and other countries leave their babies born with Ds in the hospital to be transferred to orphanages.  it's hard to believe that people in russia believe that adults with Ds "cannot take care of themselves or contribute to society. So..it is all we can do. Maybe the conditions should be better, but many of them are violent and mentally unstable. So we have no other choice.  Sorry."   this comment was posted on my friend patti's blog (A Perfect Lily.....letters to my daughter) today by a young russian woman......  this comment leads me to ask, have they ever met a child or adult with Ds?   the most kind, sweet, precious and loving people in the world?   oh my goodness..... so sad that even today in russia people believe this.....

we must pray for these people, for people around the world to have their eyes opened to the truth about Down syndrome....  we must pray that doctors will stop counseling parents who have a prenatal diagnosis of Ds to have abortions.......   the needs are so great.....  thank you God, for wyatt....for opening my eyes to the beauty that you created with that little extra chromosome.....maybe we're the ones who are missing something......