The horrific Indian Ocean Tsunami of 2004 washed out parts of Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India and Thailand, making it one of the worst natural disasters of modern-times. More than 200,000 lost their lives, and among the dead were two of the three Rangkuti children—a 4-year-old girl, and a 7-year-old boy.
Septi Rangkuti put his children on a wooden board to keep them from drowning as the tsunami’s waves crashed across the island they called home. Despite his efforts, the young children were swept out to sea.
Following the destruction, Septi and his wife, Jamaliah, spent months looking for the missing members of their family. But as time went on, they came to terms with the fact that their son and daughter were among the dead.
The Rangkutis established a “new normal.” They rebuilt their lives as best as they could and raised their surviving son—cherishing each moment together.
A decade had passed since the tsunami had destroyed their family, when Jamaliah received a phone call from her brother-in-law.
He said he’d seen a girl in his village who looked unbelievably like their long-lost daughter—the one who had died in the tsunami.
After doing some digging and asking around the community, he learned that the girl he’d recognized had in fact been orphaned after the tsunami. She was carried by the waves more than 80 miles from home where a local fisherman rescued her from a remote island. He brought her home, and his mother had raised her.
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The girl’s name was different, and she had very few memories prior to the tsunami, but the Rangkutis were hopeful it might just be their daughter.
A meeting was arranged, and it was her! It was their daughter! After all of these years, a chance “spotting” on the street led part of a family back together!
I can only imagine the emotions flying in that room!
The 14-year-old girl moved back home with her family, and as fate would have it, the media couldn’t get enough of this MIRACLE!
But through all of the attention, something even more unbelievable happened.
The 7-year-old boy who had been swept away at sea with his sister was also alive! He had been homeless for some time before a kind couple welcomed him in. When they saw the picture and heard the Rangkutis story on the news, they immediately got in touch with the family.
Not one reunion, but two!! Ten years in the making.
All of the heartache, confusion, grief and mourning—it was all replaced with unspeakable joy and overwhelming love.
Isn’t that such a testament to the miracle of Jesus Christ. No matter what our circumstance, what has happened to us, who we’ve lost and who we’ve found, with Jesus, everything is made new. Everything is re-written, and everyone gets a second chance.
SO much joy for this beautiful family’s second chance, and the love that carried them through a decade of missing one another.
