Chosen & Loved

This piece was written by Daddy Samuel on the occasion of Lorie’s second birthday. We had a birthday party and invited family and friends, which also became an opportunity to introduce her to everyone. These words captured the profundity of the emotions involved in bringing her into our home just two months prior.

What would this child be? I wondered deep inside,
As we brought her home, with hearts open wide.
Lorie our daughter, not born from our womb, 
But chosen with love, where new life may bloom

We hold her close, with joy and delight,
Knowing she is precious in God's holy sight.
Though she is ours, we're merely a part
Of the love God poured into her from the start.

For she is His - beloved and planned,
Formed by His will, cradled in His hand.
And we, but vessels in His gentle scheme,
To guide her steps toward His greater dream.

What would this child be? I ask once more,
While God's promises echo from heaven's shore.
Yet tears may fall, and fears arise, 
For the weight she may bear, the questions, the whys.

In a world where adoption is misunderstood,
Where identity wrestles with "if" and "should",
She may face trials no child should see,
And I'd bear it for her, if it could be me.

We named her Dolores, a name that bears grace,
"Close to the cross," in that sacred place.
For there, at the foot where mercy flows free,
She'll find her purpose - her true destiny.

To be orphaned holds pain words cannot contain,
A story etched deep with sorrow and strain.
Yet God, in His wisdom, rewrites such fate,
Turning mourning to dancing, love over hate.

He heals the broken, makes shattered hearts whole,
Brings beauty from ashes, restores the soul.
Adoption, a thread in His vast design,
Wove our hearts together in perfect time.

Our longing for family, our ache and plea,
Was part of His plan, part of her story.
For through our own pain, He opened the door,
And gave her a home, forevermore.

So again I whisper, with hope and with plea,
What would this child be...?
Only God knows the wonders she'll see,
As she walks hand in hand with her identity.