Tell Me A Story: CELEBRATE SARAH!

Marcia Norwood
America's STORYTELLER
Telling Untold Stories in Photographs, Prose and Public Speaking

CELEBRATE SARAH!

Happy Birthday, Sarah!

Today we celebrate you.

I'm so glad God chose me to be your mom.

The first day I met you,
you were five years and 11 months old.
You organized the "counting bears" in order,
according to color and size.

You continue to put things in order
at home, at school and at work.

You are

beautiful,

fashionable,

and
fiesty.

You are God's girl,
and have always had the gift
of discernment.

You know right from wrong,
and good from evil.

My prayer for you on your birthday,

is that you will continue

to walk on the narrow path

that God has put before you.

I'm asking God to give you

the desires of your heart.

I'm asking you to listen to His small voice,

so that the desires of your heart

will line up with His destiny for you.

Sometimes it's hard to wait on God,

but He promises:

"The Lord is a sun and shield;

God is favor and glory.

The Lord gives - doesn't withhold - good things

to those who walk with integrity."

Psalm 84:11

Common English Bible

You inspire me, Sarah Norwood.

You make me laugh

with your wicked sense of humor.

Our family wouldn't be complete without you.

Today - we celebrate you!

Here are some photos of your amazing life!

Our family needed you, just as much as you needed us!

You were adopted from China in December 1999,

and even with the dossier that took us months to complete,

with notarized, certified and authenticated documents

from the United States and China...

even with all that paperwork you,

and other adopted children were not automatically

American citizens at the time of your adoption.

We worked with other adoptive families,

and our congressmen to change the law.

"We parents, sibling...and families

throughout the nation who have experienced the JOY of

international adoption...

celebrated the passage of H.R. 2883,

Child Citizenship Act of 2000.

One Hundred Sixth Congress of the United States of America."

The law passed in 2000, took effect in 2001.

February 27, 2001, was designated

as a day in our nation's history when the largest number

of children became United States Citizens.

You, Sarah, are one of those children.

KMBC TV 9 (Kansas City, Missouri)

sent a television reporter, Maria Antonio,

to interview you and our family on this historic event.

Maria understood something of what you experienced,

because she left Cuba on a boat,

and came to the United States with her parents

when she was about 7 years old.

Despite the fact you were finally recognized

as an American Citizen,

it took our government over a year

to come up with a form,

and a way to give you and other proof of your citizenship.

Finally - in 2011 - after multiple phone calls, and multiple visits to the INS office - we paid an additional $1,000 plus each for you and your sister for PROOF of your citizenship. You already had an American passport, and a state birth certificate, but you needed a Certificate of Citizenship. No one at the immigration office ever heard of the Child Citizenship Act.

We returned to China in 2002,

to adopt your sister, Faith Fu Ju.

You might not have known each other

if not for the miracle of adoption.

You shine at your part-time job at Hy-Vee!

You represented all Hy-Vee stores

in the Kansas City Metropolitan area

at the Missouri competition!

Congratulations for winning best girl in the state!

Happy Birthday, Sarah!

Thanks for stopping by!

Come back often, and invite a friend.

Marcia Norwood
America's STORYTELLER
Telling Untold Stories in Photographs, Prose and Public Speaking

READ MORE: Type "Sarah" in the SEARCH BOX at the top right of my blog for links with more of Sarah's amazing stories.

Here's a link for one of Sarah's stories:

CLICK on the link or COPY & PASTE the link in your browser:

http://tellmeastory-marcia.blogspot.com/2012/01/he-is-greater-than-mountains.html

Marcia's story about Sarah's adoption was published in...

Chicken Soup To Inspire The Body and Soul
Edited by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen,

Dan Millman, Diana von Welanetz Wentworth
ISBN # 0-7573-0141-X
Marcia's Story: The Beautiful Girl in the Mirror" - Page 233