Don't judge another person until you have walked a mile in their shoes.

This morning I visited an old family friend who has no living relatives and she is 98 years old but still in good health.

As she lived in a community retirement home I had the good fortune to meet some of the other residents.

This is a brief story of one of the residents. Names withheld :-

"     I had a daughter out of wedlock and gave her up for adoption. That was a month before my 21st.

·       I got married to J at 25 and had my eldest daughter at 27yrs.

·       In 1975 i went on the outers 

·       in 1976 i landed up in Joburg worked at the Kenridge hospital in theatre.

·       Got involved with a chap who was an alcoholic it was mot planned but i landed up living with him. I was too scared to marry him. 

 MMy husband J divorced me in 1978.

·       I prayed and said Lord i know what i am doing is wrong, but i can't  handle life without my daughter, please give me another child to take her place.

·       J my late husband got custody of A, my daughter when I was 27 years old.

·       I'd had an operation cervectomy so doc said i could never have another child.

·       God heard my prayer, gave me a son in 1978. S.

·       Two years later He gave me a daughter E.

·       S and E's dad died in 1986.

·       Our dear Lord reunited C who i'd given up when I was 21 years old, and i were reunited but after 3 years she took her own life.

·       She had a few health issues and left the hospital. Her adoptive father took her home and she shot herself.

·       A, my daughter I had at 27 yrs old,  and I were reunited in 1986 when J, my ex-husband took an overdose of tabs and died.

·       A was a boarder at her school except weekends. My mother In law and i shared her weekends

·       When she was 21yrs she went to America after she had a son B they are still there. Her husband died a few months ago. " 

J has found comfort in the hands of being a committed Christian and she has gone a step further in that she knits dolls of all colours for abused and neglected children. 

Just an amazing resilience although it must be said that a glance at her timeline , there were many poor decisions made which could have changed the trajectory of her life. 

But it was not to be.