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YOU CAN CHANGE THE WORLD |
I have always loved music. And playing the piano has always brought me great joy. So I was thrilled when I was asked to play in a jazz band, a big band like those I grew up listening to. We played all over the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, even getting the opportunity to play at the Meyerson Symphony Center and to record a couple of CDs. Then in 1998, the band was invited to play a series of concerts in Russia. I remember one of the band members saying that Russia hadn't been on the top of his list for places to visit. Russia wasn't even on my list. Until the band decided to go, I had never even thought about going to Russia. Yet I went with the band and fell in love with the country, the culture and, most of all, the people. Our travel arrangements had us staying in the homes of host families. My wonderful host, Ludmilla, and her 6-year-old granddaughter, Genia became my life-long friends and a window through which I recognized Russia’s most valuable resource, Russians. This was further emphasized when the band members and fellow travelers were privileged to give our time to help paint a ward in a cancer hospital. There, I got the chance to meet and play with the children who were patients. They were terrific kids. They touched my heart and helped me see that God’s love knows no boundaries. After we came home, I made the decision to adopt a little girl. And I knew that my daughter would be waiting for me in Russia. Even though I was single, I knew that I would have the love and support of the people who had become my family at Lovers Lane Church, the sponsor of our Jazz Band. Those same wonderful people have embraced my daughter as part of the family, the family of God. Did her world change from what it would have been? Sure. But I watch her now as she grows up and know that I’m the one who was truly blessed. She is now blossoming where she has been planted, and is growing into a lovely young lady. She changes and enriches the lives of all those who know her. Who would have thought that a trip with the Jazz Band from Lovers Lane Church could change the world? But, it did. And my world will never be the same. We would love to hear from you!
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