God’s beautiful children

The handicapped Filipino girl glowed as she was brought out on stage in a little white dress and pink bow. People often talk about getting their “fifteen minutes of fame,” and this was hers. With some help (well, maybe a lot of help) from two adult dancers, the girl participated in a piece of performance art to commemorate the special occasion – the recent opening of a fantastic new facility for a special-needs school run by the Daughters of Wisdom and sponsored by Cross Catholic.

Other students at La Sagesse (formerly the Trichet Learning Center) also got their chance to contribute to this special time of music, worship, and thanksgiving, without fear of being looked down on because of their mental and physical handicaps. You’ll never see any of these children on “Dancing with the Stars,” but I would trade all of Hollywood’s glitter for the chance to watch one Down syndrome girl or wheelchair-bound boy stumble through a song. Because the truth is, we are all just like them: finite creatures struggling in our small, inadequate way to create something beautiful. And the amazing part is that the Almighty Creator of the universe accepts our crayon scribbles, hangs them on his refrigerator door, and says, “That’s my child!” This extravagant kind of love is what we strive to impart to the children at La Sagesse.

-Tony M.