The Waiting: The True Story of a Lost Child, a Lifetime of Longing, and a Miracle for a Mother Who Never Gave Up

An unforgettable true story that will touch your heart and make you believe in love?s enduring legacy, and in the power of prayer.In 1928, 16-year-old Minka was on a picnic in the woods when she was assaulted and raped. And suddenly this innocent farm girl?who still thought the stork brought babies?was pregnant. The baby was secretly born, named Betty Jane, and given up for adoption. For decades, Minka wrote letters trying to get news of her daughter; she kept loving and praying for her, even though she never dared believe they would meet again. Until nearly eighty years later, when Minka whispered her secret, impossible prayer for the first time: Lord, I?d like to see Betty Jane before I die. I promise I won?t bother her or interrupt her life. I just want to lay eyes on her. Unbeknownst to Minka, that very same day, a judge was releasing the sealed adoption records to her 77-year-old daughter. And soon, Minka?s phone would ring. Written by Cathy LaGrow (Minka?s granddaughter), The Waiting brings three generations of this most unusual family together over the course of a century to tell a story of faith that triumphs, forgiveness that sets us free, and love that never forgets. Review When author LaGrow heard her grandmother Minka's story of her first daughter--conceived as a result of rape nearly 80 years earlier, when her grandmother was 16; born in secret; and then placed for adoption--she could hardly imagine that it was all true. Yet the adoption file contained indisputable evidence: decades worth of Minka's letters asking for news of this baby she had named Betty Jane. Unbelievably, that same baby, now also a grandmother and named Ruth, was seeking her biological mother and had obtained the previously sealed adoption record. Through many cross-country meeting between the women and their families, LaGrow came to know the stories of both women's lives through the decades during which they had been separated and their ultimate and utter joy when reunited. While the presence of some historical details distracts from the rhythm of the story, LaGrow tells Minka's story with candor that makes the characters come alive. It is a stunning story of forgiveness, faithfulness, and persistent hope.--Publishers Weekly"The Waiting" offers up the poignant and true story of a lost child and a mother who never gave up searching for her, and gathers decades of secret letters from a mother reflecting her perpetual agony wondering how her daughter is doing in life. As her reflection turns to an all-out search, readers follow her progress, begun when she was raped by a stranger in the woods and following her search for God's insights along the way. The result is a title that blends biography with spiritual reflection and a vivid, true search that readers will find engrossing.--Midwest Book Review From the Inside Flap Decades of secret letters from a mother longing for her daughter . . .1929: I sure hated to give her up. But I know it was for the best. I miss her so every night . . .1933: I would like to know how my big baby girl is getting along. . . . Sometimes the hills are hard to climb, and if I could only hear of her once in awhile it means so much.1939: Bless her little heart, I hope she shall be happy always. . . . I would so appreciate just a line or two about her.1944: I?m wondering how my little Betty is. I know I should be very proud of her now. She must be a young lady, nearly sixteen. I think of her so often. . . .1945: Betty Jane will be seventeen yrs old . . . it hardly seems possible . . . please write me if you?ve any news . . . she is at such a tender age now.1947: Please write me if you have word . . . will make my Xmas happier just to know she is fine and happy. . . . From the Back Cover It?s never too late for a miracle.When an old woman begs God to let her see the daughter who had been taken from her arms almost eighty years before?could her impossible prayer come true