Contemplating what this month represents for those of us with a Down syndrome member in our family brought me back to a powerful moment in the life of Kaely shortly after her birth.
Kaely was born on January 2, 1999. She was healthy with no significant health risks that sometimes occur with the diagnosis of Down syndrome. However, due to that time of year being flu and cold season even in sunny Central Florida, where we lived, Kaely’s pediatrician recommended that she not be out in public for the first six weeks of life (a great recommendation for all newborns regardless of the time of year!). We readily adhered to that recommendation and stayed home, and Kaely thrived. At the end of the six weeks, a women’s breakfast at our church was scheduled on a Saturday morning, so Kaely and I attended. I was quite guarded with Kaely keeping her at a distance from all on-lookers and placing a blanket over her carrier to help protect from germs and bacteria. I was a veteran mom with four children at home before her, but I was new to the special needs of Down syndrome.
After a wonderful outing with friends at church, Kaely and I headed to the local mall to make a quick purchase. I was caught completely off-guard walking into a large department store in the mall with all the human traffic. The middle of February usually presented much lighter traffic, so I made sure my blanket was covering the carrier and pushed through to hurry out. Suddenly, out of nowhere, two elderly black women approached me. They asked to see my baby. Politely, I refused and started to move on. They were insistent and politely stayed their ground. Without understanding why I hesitantly pulled the blanket back revealing Kaely. Each of the women very tenderly placed a hand on my little daughter and without hesitation began to pray for her. Although I could not understand anything they said, I intuitively knew they were blessing her, anointing her, and in general praying for her. They finished, thanked me, and turned to walk away.
Trying to take in what had just happened, I looked down at Kaely and quickly covered her, then I looked up to see what direction the women took, still marveling at them. They were nowhere in sight. Although I scanned all four directions very quickly, they were nowhere to be seen.
I knew Kaely had been visited…
Angels? And what did that mean? Here we are almost 22 years down the road, and I at least partially understand. Kaely, like so many Downs people and special needs people, has touched more lives in a powerful way than all the rest of this family has corporately, multiplied. Her simple understanding of a God Almighty and the power of Worship is stunning, as demonstrated in her dance. Kaely has an exciting life of worship and service ahead of her and she will seize every second of it with consuming love and staggering beauty and grace.
So, during this month of Down syndrome awareness, may we be crystal clear about the fact the God designed these kids with an extra chromosome and He has powerful and magnificent plans for each of them to impact His world for beauty, amazing good, and His Glory in their very simple and powerful way!
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