GI saves Iraqi boy in long-shot adoption
December 24th, 2007
Extended feature by Carrie Antlfinger, Associated Press writer, in the Boston Globe and elsewhere.
Scott Southworth, a GI from Wisconsin, adopts Ala’a Eddeen, an Iraqi boy with cerebral palsy.
Not everything is perfect. Ala’a never encountered thunderstorms in Baghdad, and the flash-boom reminds him of bombs. He is starting to get over it, although he still weeps during violent storms.
But Ala’a — who picked out his own name, which means to be near God — knows he’s where he belongs. Southworth always says Ala’a picked him, not the other way around. They were brought together, Southworth believes, by a “web of miracles.”
Ala’a likes to sing Sarah McLachlan’s song, “Ordinary Miracle,” from “Charlotte’s Web,” one of his favorite movies. His head and body lean to one side as he sings off-key.
“It’s just another ordinary miracle today. Life is like a gift they say. Wrapped up for you everyday.”
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on Monday, December 24th, 2007 at 9:03 am and is filed under adoption, cerebral palsy.
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