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{Straight From the Heart}   *The Pretty Lady From Viet Nam*  11/3/00
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THE PRETTY LADY FROM VIET NAM
 
By Virginia Ellis

Pretty face, tiny body,
Coal black shining hair,
Porcelain doll with misty eyes
Precious angel tucked in there.
 
Oh such tortures she endured,
No one can ever know,
Yet she speaks just to encourage,
Not to share her tale of woe.
 
A little child locked in prison,
Not yet twenty-one,
Wrong place - wrong time - no reason,
Hated by the Viet Cong.
 
Months she languished, barely fed,
Without light or heat,
Crowded, filthy, dirt-floor cell,
Bugs or rats her only meat.
 
In the darkness, in a corner,
To a Jesus Christ she prayed,
In no position to make bargains,
Yet she offered Him a trade.
 
"YOU SAVE MY LIFE - I GIVE YOU ME,
THAT'S ALL I GOT," she said.
In the morning, they took others,
But no hair was touched upon her head.
 
God, then, saved her from her captors,
Even though her cell mates died,
Herded out like so much cattle,
Shot before her frightened eyes.
 
That very morning they released her,
Why, they did not say,
Except they figured in the jungle,
She would not live more than a day.
 
Tough little soul, she made it through,
She, somehow, reached a friendly town,
Hospitalized for many weeks,
'Til health restored - then America bound.
 
Her last stop at the mission church,
Renewed the pledge she'd made,
"YOU SAVE ME, GOD - YOU GOT ME
I DO JUST LIKE YOU SAY."
 
Now, twenty-some years later,
This tiny flower thrives,
Children, husband, home, career,
What a joy to be alive.
 
Enterprising and ambitious,
She has a beauty shop.
House and home come first, of course,
But many days she works non-stop.
 
While having my hair done one day,
I overheard her conversation,
A whining client was complaining,
Of some petty tribulations.
 
When she called a friend a nasty name,
This small lady of big stature,
Stood back, her hands on hips,
And righteously attacked her.
 
"LADY, YOU WRONG.  YOU UNKIND,
NO WONDER YOU NO FRIENDS,
YOU THINK MORE IMPORTANT THING,
LIKE LIFE AND HOW IT END."
 
"YOU THINK GOD AND HEAVEN AND HELL,
ONE DAY YOU KNOW YOU DIE,
BE GRATEFUL YOU GOT THREE MEAL,
YOU CLEAN, YOU WARM, YOU DRY."
 
"GOD DON'T WANT YOU MEAN,
BE NICE - HE LOVE YOU, TOO,
HE SAVE YOU - IF YOU SORRY,
OH, MA'AM, I SO SAD FOR YOU,"
 
Then smiling, she went back to work,
Her customer was cowed,
And in my heart of hearts,
I wanted to applaud.
 
Such a tiny messenger,
With message monumental,
I think the angels cheered this day,
At words, naive and fundamental.
 
Do you know how they spell her name?
In Nam, it's H-A-P-P-I,
Over here, we spell it better,
We spell it H-A-P-P-Y.
 
Virginia (Ginny) Ellis, Copyright © 2000
Virginia asked that her email address not be given out at this time, but be sure and check out her website and sign her guestbook at:

Virginia Ellis
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Creek/7984/Index.html

************
As far as a bio, I haven't too much to say, other than I am a Sr citizen and
I live in California.  You might be more interested in some background to
the poem - such as, it is based on truth.  There is a real Happy, and her
story is basically true.  She was in prison in Vietnam.  She did make it to
this country and did marry an American.  Now they have a beautiful little
boy.  The episode in the beauty shop did take place, although I did not
personally overhear the conversation.  It was repeated to me later by Happy
herself and it involved one of my neighbors.  Happy did become a Christian,
just as she vowed while in prison in Vietnam.
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Requests:

From: cheetah@citynet.net (Sherri)

Hi Everyone,
My mother went to see the cancer specialist today.  He has informed her that the cancer is in her abdomen lining and can't be taken out.  He says there is no cure for this.  She will be taking chemo treatments every 3 weeks starting on Nov. 15.  He said this can put it in remission.  She has to go next Tuesday for a Cat Scan, X-rays, and blood work.  The specialist is sure this is no where else and had to have started in her ovaries or her abdomen lining.  He just wants to run all the tests to be on the safe side.  What my mother says - 1) they haven't done any blood work since a day or two after her surgery, she feels God has his plans here.  2) She knows God will take care of her.  He has showed her so much already and her faith  and strength is in Him not the Doctors.  It has always been this way. She keeps reminding us of that too.  They told her today that she will lose her hair and she is OK with that.  She may get sick and she can handle that.  They also said she can just carry on as she has before.  And that is just what she is planning on doing.  She told me she is not done working for the Lord.  Some of you know my mother and know what kind of relationship she has with the Lord.  The Lord gave her the following scripture from Psalms 118:17  I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord.  She is holding onto that scripture and I read it many times a day.  Over and over again!
We don't know why this has happened and probably never will till we come face to face with our Saviour.  Right now all anyone can do is pray.   So please lift her name up to God and have everyone you know that knows how to pray to do so.  I know there is no distance in prayer and God hears those prayers!
Thanks and God Bless!
Sherri

From: emh67@hotmail.com (Montie Hickey)

 I wish you would pray for my nephew.  He is 14 and recently found a mole on his back, the doctor thinks it might be melanoma (skin Cancer).  We ask that you pray for him and the family.  We are really scared, I know the Lord has a plan  for my nephews life.  Please pray for the Lords will.  We pray that the results come back
negative, but if they don't he is going to need a lot of strength from the
Lord.  Thank you for your prayers.

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Thought For the Day:

"The greatest use of life is to spend it for something that will outlast it."

Verse for the Day:

"But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal."
Matthew 6:20

Kid's Thought For The Day:

"No one should wear white pants."

Parent's Thought For The Day

"It is important to give our children two things. The first is roots; the other, wings."

Coach's Thought For The Day

"I don't believe for a second weightlifting is a sport. They
pick up a heavy thing and put it down again. To me, that's
indecision."
--Paula Poundstone

Deep Thought For The Day:

"Never wrestle with a pig...you both get all dirty and the pig loves it!"

  _
/_/\/\    MICHAEL T. POWERS
\_\  /    THUNDER27@aol.com  
/_/  \    "For I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but
\_\/\ \   Christ lives in me.  The life I live in the body I live for the Son
   \_\/   of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."  Galatians 2:20 

Video Imagery (Michael's Video Production Business.)

"I thought of you first after my family sat down to watch the video we gave them. They loved it, to say the least!  Within thirty seconds my mom was crying and my dad did too.  They said it was the best Christmas gift we could have given them!!  You did such a beautiful job!  They were so surprised and so touched---they really, really, really loved it.  Thanks for helping to make it so special to us all.  My mom mentioned how the songs were perfect for the video too!  Thanks again!"
        
Kelli  (RKaGe@aol.com)    College Station, TX

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