Mindy's Miracle
Baby Mindy came to us from South Korea on June 16th, 1987. Her dad, big sister Aimee, and I cried with joy when she was placed in my arms at the airport. We loved her so!
We took Mindy to our pediatrician and he discovered that she had a huge hole in her left eardrum, with very little eardrum left. Over the next months, her eardrum deteriorated until there was no eardrum at all. She suffered frequent ear cysts, infections, febrile seizures and began taking antibiotics. When Mindy was 2 years old, a tube was surgically placed in her right ear to drain fluids that caused ear infections, hearing and speech problems. When she was 3, we moved to New York and found a new doctor that Mindy adored. He told us about a surgical procedure of creating an eardrum out of a flap of Mindy’s inner ear tissue that would bounce sound waves and prevent cysts from forming in her ear, but the operation could only be performed when she was 8 years old. I wondered how my little girl could bear 5 years of excruciating pain. We constantly prayed that something could be done as we waited.
When Mindy was 4, a painful cyst developed deep in her ear canal. The doctor did a very thorough ear examination, deciding to operate in 3 days. That night Mindy awoke screaming in pain. I comforted her as we watched the movie “The Greatest Story Ever Told” and told her we would see the doctor in the morning. Mindy asked, “Mommy, can Jesus still make people all better like He did in the movie?” I really didn’t know, and I said so. She folded her hands, bowed her head and prayed, “God and Jesus please fix my ear and make it better. I love You. Amen.”
The next morning, the doctor looked in Mindy’s left ear then her right, and back again. He shook his head in disbelief. The nurse asked him what was wrong. He said, “There is a brand new baby eardrum in there!” The nurse took a look, and soon it seemed that the whole hospital was coming to look too. The doctor said, “I don’t know how this happened. Two days ago, there was no eardrum in here!” Then Mindy said, “I asked Jesus to fix my ear, and He did!” I almost fell off of my chair! She smiled sweetly and told the doctor her ears didn’t hurt any more. The doctor did hearing tests on both ears – both tested perfect. A huge tear rolled down his cheek. The doctor was crying! We had all witnessed a MIRACLE! The doctor told me to plan a trip to Disney World (Mindy’s biggest wish) to celebrate and to swim. You see, Mindy was never allowed to get water in her ears so swimming was not allowed. We thanked God over and over for this wonderful blessing. Mindy did get to go swimming at Disney and she has never had an ear infection or hearing problems since that day.
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Mindy received a full scholarship to Columbia College and graduated in May 2009 earning highest honors of Summa Cum Laude, with a degree in Speech Language Pathology.
Once upon a time we dreamed of loving a child from a far away land. Holt International Children’s Services helped Mindy to have a “Forever Family” and God gave us the gift of a miracle. We can only imagine what the future holds for Mindy!
– Susan Cavendish, Mindy’s Mom
Holt International
Orphaned, abandoned and vulnerable children around the world need love; they need belonging and security. At Holt International, they believe that families meet these needs better than any alternative. Established on a Christian foundation over 50 years ago, Holt International continues to be a world leader in international adoption, domestic adoption and programs that enable children to have families of their own. Through Holt you can bring a child into your life by adopting or by sponsoring the care of a child in their program.
Holt International is dedicated to carrying out God's plan for every child to have a permanent, loving family. For more information visit www.HoltInternational.org