What If..................

I know that by know you all are very familiar with our new friend Elsie. We have been trying to be an encouragement to her. She has a desire to please and to make others happy. We recently told you all that we suspected that she needed glasses. So, Mark and I asked her mom if we could carry her to have her eyes examened. The cost for such an exam is rather inexpensive, however it is the cost of the glasses that the people here can not afford. Today, Taylor and I went to pick her up and Mark and the boys were going to meet us at the mall. When we arrived at her house, she was a little saddened because she was not ready. She asked if she could change and freshen up. I watched as she ran in her house and quickly changed into some clean clothes. She then went over to her outdoor bodega to use a bowl to begin washing her arms and legs off. Her momma quickly brushed her hair and pulled it back so we could leave.

We are not very familiar with eye doctors around here but Gabby had told us about the one at the mall, so we were off. Mark kept the boys out in the lobby and Elsie and I went in the examing room. As I sat there listening to the doctor ask her questions and hearing her replies, I knew that this check-up was not going to be good. The letters on the back wall were very large.....however she had trouble with them all until he adjusted the lens on the machine. She never could read the letters in the bottom row. Bless her heart she had to hold the paper almost at her nose to be able to read. The doctor asked her about school and how she was doing, she said that she had not been since the 2nd grade. She told the doctor that she could not go back to school because she did not have the money to get glasses. Therefore, she is 13 with at best a second grade education, b/c she could not see while she was there. After the exam, she went out to sit with the other kids and Mark and I talked to the doctor.....He began to say that she needed glasses, but she would never have 100% vision. The only way to help with that was possibly with surgery in the future. WHAT IF......you were 13 and could not SEE!...better yet what if you could not see at all......God does everything for a reason.....who knows how much longer she would have the vision that she has had God not allowed us to meet down on that dirt path. The glasses that she needs have to be specially made for her, b/c she was pretty much blind. The cost for the new glasses is $130. Please help us by praying that she will be able to get the glasses that she so desperatly needs. Her mom tries hard and only washes clothes by hand for people in their area. She has no running water or electricity and they already eat day by day. What if......these beautiful green eyes lost their ability to see??