"The Orphans Never Have a Day Like This"

Karina weeped on my shoulder tonight...
not because someone had hurt her...
"this is so much fun"...
not because she had a bad day...
"It was one of the best day's of my life"...
she was weeping because she was thinking of the children she grew up with... the orphans that do not have a mom or dad... the orphans that are sitting in orphanages all around the world crying out "why doesn't anyone want me?"

A friend stopped by the house today and handed me a large stack of tickets for rides at the Mississippi State Fair.  He said, "I want you to have these... go have some fun with the family."
So this afternoon all of us piled in the van and went to the fair.
It was Karina's first time to the fair... any fair.

Now the rest of our kids have been to the fair but today was different.  It was different because, in the past, a typical fair day for us looks like this:
go during lunch so parking and entrance is free... don't ride any rides... instead go to the free petting zoo and look at all the animals... walk around... leave the fair.
Before the fair started this year one of our kids asked, "Dad, can we actually ride a ride this year instead of just doing the free stuff?"
I told him, "We'll see."

Well our friend, Sam, changed that today.  Thanks for the tickets, Sam!

With a large stack of tickets the kids were able to ride many rides... all of them had a blast... Storey Grace, Noah, Isaac, Harrison and Karina.

We spent a while in the kiddie section and then Karina wanted to go ride the big rides.  We all rode the ferris wheel together and ate caramel apples.  Isaac saw a booth where someone tries to guess your weight and he wanted to try it... the guess was wrong and he got a giant sword... Harrison tried and won a sword... Noah tried it and won a dolphin... even Storey Grace tried it and won a puppy.... Karina said she did not want anyone trying to guess her weight.

We spent hours enjoying each others company, talking with people and riding the rides.
All the kids faces were lit up with excitement.... Karina's expression had something else in it...
she talked about it when we were home:
"This day was so wonderful.  I was with my family all day.  We were together having fun.  Today I did things that I have never done... and I did them with my family.  Orphans never have days like this.  Daddy, my friends in Ukraine have never known a day like this.  Will they ever know a day like this?  Today was the best day... I am so happy and so sad..."
She weeped for the children around the world that are sitting in orphanages...
she weeped for the children who never spend a day with their mommy and daddy...
she weeped for the children that have never been to the fair, holding their sisters hand, eating a candy apple, riding the ferris wheel...
she weeped for her friends who, instead of a day like Karina had, are beaten, abused, forgotten, scared, wondering if anyone will ever come for them, sleeping on the streets, hiding in the sewers...

she weeped for her classmates that, one by one, on Karina's last day at the orphanage said, "Karina, do not forget me!  Tell people I am here!  Please find me a mommy and a daddy!  Tell them I am real!  Tell them I will be good!  Tell me I want them... and ask if they want me... I will be waiting for them... I will be watching out the bar covered window to see if they are coming to get me."

The orphans do look out the window.  We see their eyes peering out every time we visit.
They are waiting for you to come get them...
And to give an orphan a day like they have never had.