WILLS POINT, Texas (ANS) — Gnana clearly remembers the day her granddaughters moved in. The burden of caring for them became a heavy weight on her elderly frame. At age 70, how was she possibly going to provide for and look after a 3-year-old and a newborn?
Gospel For Asia (www.gfa.orf) says that less than two months earlier, the little girl’s father had finally succumbed to cancer. His death was a severe blow to their mother, who was still pregnant with her youngest. With no husband or father to provide for the poor family, fear compounded their grief.
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Three-year-old Masara watched her mother mourn the death of her father. Masara’s mother prayed day and night to give birth to a son who could one day become the man of the house. Only a son would bring a glimmer of happiness to the family, she believed. But 15 days after her father’s death, Serena was born, a beautiful girl who shattered the little hope of happiness the family still had.
The family did not know how things could get any worse.
However, after giving birth to a second daughter, Masara and Serena’s mother developed jaundice. Because of the family’s poverty, they could not afford the treatment at the hospital needed to save her life. She died when her baby was just 20 days old. In 35 days, Masara and Serena lost everything.
Death of Parents Cinches Girls’ Poverty
After the death of their parents, Masara and Serena went to live with Gnana, their grandmother. Gnana owned a small nut shop and worked hard to provide for her granddaughters; she even borrowed money from neighbors when she just didn’t have enough. At a time of life when she should have been cared for by her adult children, tragedy turned everything upside down.
When the girls reached school age, Gnana could not afford the textbooks, uniforms and other supplies required for the girls to attend school. Without a man in the house to provide for the girls in the future, she knew how important it was for the girls to get an education so they could later work to meet their own needs.
Then, when it was least expected, a ray of hope and relief came into Gnana’s life. Spots in the local GFA-supported Bridge of Hope program were offered to Masara and Serena. Both girls and their grandmother were elated! Gnana enrolled the girls right away. From that time on, Bridge of Hope provided all the necessary items for the girls to attend school.
The burden Gnana had carried since opening her home to her orphaned granddaughters began to dissolve. She never borrowed money from neighbors again. Hope for the future is beginning to grow in her heart. Her precious girls are thriving under the love and care of the Bridge of Hope staff, and happiness has entered their life once more.
** Names of people and places may have been changed for privacy and security reasons. Images are GFA stock photos used for representation purposes and are not the actual person or location, unless otherwise noted.
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The author of this story, Michael Ireland, is a self-supported media missionary with ANS. Click here to support him as a missionary journalist.
