Success

Today is the day we have been waiting for!!! We are both giddy with anticipation and a bundle of nerves. Everyone is ready to leave the house at 5:50 am so we can pick up Husnia who will translate for the doctors and nurses, and get to the hospital by 6:30 am to check in for surgery. Things move along in quick succession, and by 7:15 Ali is gowned, has his IV, and is watching TV while we wait for Dr. Bertsch to greet us on her way to scrub. The one concern that he has is about the stitches that will be placed after surgery. He showed us a scar on the palm of his hand that he got from being cut by a piece of metal that required stitches, and remembering the removal of those stitches were the cause of his concern. Dr. Bertsch assured him that this time it would be different. (She was in fact able to use all dissolvable sutures and steri-strips, so there are no sutures to be removed) The sedation began to work within 2 minutes of being pushed into his IV, and 2 hours later he was back in his room, requesting to go home. Still groggy and silly from the anesthesia we managed to keep him there long enough to eat half a pop tart and drink enough coke to satisfy the recovery room nurses that he could in fact, go home.

My relief is replaced by gratitude and I am struck by the gift that Solace for the Children has given this sweet and loving young boy. A gift that will transform his life from being the boy who is an outcast to the boy who went to America and returned to Afghanistan healed. I am grateful to the doctors and hospital who made this gift possible, and to our God who through all things are possible.

Peace,
Meg

Kites

Okay so I admit it... this isn't as easy to keep up with as I thought it was going to be. Time just gets away from me and before I realize it we're half way through our 6 week stay and I realize I haven't posted in more than a week! So here we are sitting at Holden Beach, NC for a week of sun and sand and waves and kites and a family gathering that is the glue in our lives. Nawroz has never been to the beach, or seen the ocean or the dunes of sand that lay between Serenity's Star, our home for the week and the vast expanse of the Atlantic Ocean. The pure joy and wonder at every turn and at every site is his gift to all of us. This annual week at the beach is truly soul food and rejuvinates the spirits of all of us. And it's will be the perfect preparation for the surgery that will happen on Friday July 24 at 8:00 in the morning. Our visit with Dr. Bertsch was exactly what we've been praying for, and although she had yet to see the actual CT results or report (not sure why I actually expected those to be in her hands before the appointment) she is certain that the Lipoma can be easily removed. She will make an incision along the base of the mass and remove it, then reduce the excess tissue when she is finished, and everything should be hidden by his natural hair line. He is giddy with anticipation and his face lit up with such excitment when the translator told him that the surgery would be done. We are grateful to the hospital and Dr. Bertsch who will so generously give this life changing gift to the little boy who has changed our lives forever.

Peace,
Meg

Firsts

Everything has been a first. First time swimming, first boat ride, first popcicle and icecream cone and very first time there has been a ct scan of the squishy mass on the back of his head. And for the first time we can see that it is totally outside the brain and appears to be just under the scalp. Our visit to the surgeon on Thursday will tell for sure, but from all reports it appears that the growth can be removed. Still I'm trying not to look beyond today, but as the pieces of the puzzle begin to fit together, it's hard not to try to see the big picture of the impact we will have if we are indeed able to perform surgery. The difference we will make in this little boy's life will change him forever. Not only through the surgery we hope to perform, but through the love and laughter that we surround him with. To see the bonds that have developed already remind me that language is less important than actions and that love does build bridges. Slowly the trust contines to build, and each day our lives grow richer because of the firsts.

Peace,
Meg

Appointments

Over the past two days, we've made our way to the dentist, eye doctor and pediatrician, and with the exception of needing glasses for reading, and the fist-sized squishy mass on the back of his head, Nawroz is in remarkably good shape. And squishy mass is the doctor's term, not mine - but it is completely accurate. The 4 cm x 5 cm tumor which protrudes from the right side of the back of his head has been growing there since he was born, and it is squishy and feels something like a fluid filled sac. In another country it might have been caught at perhaps 6 months of age and removed, but due to the lack of medical care where he lives in Afghanistan that simply is not possible. So we will be scheduled for an appointment to have a CT scan with contrast so that the doctors can determine exactly how the tumor is organized, how it is "fed" and how we can possibly remove or drain it. It appears to be just under the skin, and since he's developed as an otherwise normal boy for the past 12 years, we are hopeful there is no brain involvement. I'm trying to stay in the moment of the here in now and not get my hopes up too high that it will be as easy to remove as the pediatrician seems to think it could be. But I just can't help and think about how happy Nawroz's parents will be if we are able to remove that mass. And how really happy he will be too. For now I will be patient and pray for my miracle while we wait for the scan and results, and I'll continue to soak up every single moment of this most incredible time.

Peace,
Meg

Day 1 and 2

Arrival day was a blur. Families began gathering at the airport at 7:30 am and over the course of the next hour, the entire area known as Baggage Claim A became the scene of organized chaos. News cameras and reporters interviewed waiting families and eager brothers and sisters raced back and forth between the arrival escalators and their parents, overflowing with anticipation. It was all a joyful noise that even other airport passengers couldn't help but stop and ask about. But that was nothing compared to the outburst of applause and cheers that erupted as the children finally made their way down the escalator. There were tears and hugs for returning children, and there were tears and hugs for children here for the first time who are just now realizing that they are really very far from home. The love and compassion that embraced each child will help to begin the slow journey of building trust and sharing peace that will happen over the next 6 weeks. And so it is with Nawroz. Shy and very unsure of his new surroundings, and exhausted from a 3 day journey, as soon as we arrived home and he saw his bed, that is where he landed. He crawled under the covers at 10:30 am Tuesday morning, and did not stir until 7:00 am this morning. Now that's a tired boy! Slowly we've been making our way, communicating through pointing and gestures, and a rather helpful Farsi-English dictionary. Tomorrow is the dentist -- when he saw that word in the dictionary he shook his head no, funny how that works - affirms my belief that all kids are just kids. Then we get a few hours of one-on-one time with the interpreter to give us all a chance to try to get to know eachother a little better. That will be great! For now, I've learned that he is 12, that I guessed pretty good and he's a size 8, he likes bananas and grapes, and he's pretty darn good at the Wii.

Peace,
Meg

Meet Nawroz

On June 23 our family will begin a 6 week journey of faith and hope and love as we welcome Nawroz to our family. Nawroz is one of 34 children who will travel from their homes across Afghanistan to the Lake Norman Area of North Carolina where they will receive medical care and spend 6 weeks living without the daily stress of war.

SOLACE for the Children is a non-profit organization that I have been a board member of for the past several years. We first began bringing children from Belarus to North Carolina in the 1990s to receive dental and medical care, and in 2001 and 2003 I traveled there on mission trips with Lake Norman Children's Relief. In 2007 as our ability to provide treatment for Belarus became limited, we turned our focus to Afghanistan and during that summer brought 7 children for our Summer Program. Last year we brought 21 children, and this year there will be 34.

I invite you to visit our website http://www.solaceforthechildren.orgto understand the mission of our program and to see the great things we do. For the past 5 years our family has hosted adult chaperones with the program, but this will be our first time hosting a child. And a boy at that! As a family with 3 daughters, this should be a new experience for sure!

My hope is to share our experience building peace on a foundation of health, as we share our summer with Nawroz with all of you.

Peace,
Meg