Karen and Dorian

I don't know how many of you can honestly say that you enjoy who you work with. I pray that it is true for all of you. If you had asked me anytime in the past 16 months if I like who I work with I would have told you yes...yet it has only been within the past couple of weeks that I have truly come to see how much I truly love working with Dorian and Karen. I love the routine way we work together to provide for our kiddos. I love watching both of them interact with the kiddos. Most of our kids come from families where men rarely respected women, where the kids were often without their father AND mother, where love was far from what God intended, where right from wrong was never clearly defined. I am thankful that God sent Karen and Dorian to show our kids different. Their example of love within a healthy (Godly) relationship is one that I pray becomes embedded within each of our kiddos and one that they learn to gravitate towards. More than that I love the way each of them deals with our kiddos. I sat at Pizza Hut the other day fixated on the scene Karen made with our kiddos. She sat in the midst of them tearing up their food, passing out napkins, reminding them to eat their sandwich before they got full on fries, and doing everything a good mother does. Of course our kids couldn’t just eat their food and listen to the momma….Cindy had to complain about not wanting to eat her sandwich. I’m not sure now exactly as to why she didn’t want to but I believe she gave the “it’s cold” excuse that comes out when she doesn’t want to eat something. Just as quickly and without a moment’s hesitation Karen reminded her to give thanks for what she has. Those instantaneous responses seem to always come flowing out of her mouth to remind the kids what God would think/want in a situation.

Yet the thing I love most is simply the give take of our relationship. The way we compliment each others strengths and weaknesses or the way one kid has come to respond better to one of us or the other. It is all a balancing game that I feel we become better at by the day. We each have our respective roles, responsibilities, and techniques in this place but when I need one of them to flex or bend they do so willingly. No amount of thank yous would ever be enough for the ways they have stepped up these past couple of weeks. 4 or 5 times now they have jumped in a car to rush Izzy to the hospital. No matter if it was morning, night, or an all day adventure they didn't hesitate when they realized I needed them. They both went above and beyond anything I could have ever asked of them and never once complained. (and believe me they've went through/put up with a lot) They were always there asking what I needed and offering up advice....yet in the end they always made it clear that no matter what I needed or wanted to do they would make it happen. Yet this went far above simply serving me....they both have fallen in love with little Izzy and have stood beside me in this fight. They are praying her through each step and holding their breath waiting for clarity. I’ve listened to each show their concern or get choked up about our girl. They’ve fought doctors, nurses, and anyone else that gave us grief. They’ve played translator, nurse, friend, and even parent. They’ve put in late nights and long days…and done anything that Izzy or I needed. As I said…thank you doesn’t say enough what I feel in this heart.

So I pray tonight that each of you has a Karen or Dorian in your work place or even just in life.