Here I am again.  It is a maddening place to be.  Nevertheless here I am.

I hate this position.  I loathe being out of control.  If only I had a magic wand to wave, and some way to help....

I was going about my day today.  Driving to an appointment,  Thinking about the day and how the sun was shining.  The radio even said that it would be 68 degrees on Thursday.  Though the thick frost on the windshield did not want to melt, I knew the day would be a good one.

And it was.  Until just a brief moment later ~ when my cell phone rang.  Caller ID showed the name of a client of mine.  Cheerfully, I answered the phone to talk with Susan (name has been changed to protect client identity).  When I asked her how she was, how things were, she said to me, "They have been better...."

Which begged the questions, "What's going on and how can I help?"  Susan proceeded to inform me that her husband was being deported back to South America.  Now before you go getting all crazy about this one way or another, let me explain this particular situation to you.

Mr. Susan has been in the United States for 18 or twenty years.  He was granted political asylum by our government.  He married Susan and they have since had three beautiful (and still quite young) children.  Mr. Susan has been working very hard for several years and has had the legal ability to work here granted by the United States.  Now he has been given his marching orders.  Because the stability of the country he is returning to is so poor, he will be leaving Susan and their children here while they try to sort things out.  While they fight to get him back into the United States.

So, at this point, Susan is trying to figure out how in the world they will afford to keep their house and pay for a decent attorney.  They are attempting to learn all of their options with fairly limited financial resources.  She phoned me today hoping that I would have an idea.  A solution.  A plan.  I did not and I do not. 

So while I pray for wisdom, peace in their family, and financial provision for them.  I also ask you to join me.  You see every foreclosure has a story.  They are not all about the so called mortgage meltdown.  They are not all related to the subprime crises.  They often occur as life gets in the way of our own plans.  Mr. & Mrs. Susan are not in danger of foreclosure yet.  They are smart people...and they have saved enough money for a few months worth of bills.  Let's just pray that this family is protected physically, financially, and emotionally.  And...if you have any ideas on a good course of action or game plan for this family...please do let me know.

Thanks for your time, your thoughts, and your prayers in advance.  They are appreciated by me, and by this family of five.

**  As per special request, an update ~  Mr. and Mrs. Susan have better spirits.  However, there are no solid answers as of yet.  Please continue your prayers.  If you would like to donate anything, I have started accepting donations for their legal costs regarding immigration.  You can mail payments to ~ Sarah Eubanks, 19673 Toni Court, Oregon City, OR 97045.  If yu feel like sharing with this family, please include a note to encourage them.  remind them that not all Americans are in agreement.  Thanks for everyone's compassion and concern.   (Updated 04/09/08)