Chapter 1
A Journey of Love Beyond Borders
Finding Chika is more than a book-it's a journey into the heart of what it means to love unconditionally across borders, cultures, and impossible circumstances. Mitch Albom, whose "Tuesdays with Morrie" touched millions with its wisdom about life's end, now brings us a story about life's beginning and middle-cut tragically short. This memoir has become a beacon for those navigating grief, adoption, and the meaning of family. Oprah Winfrey called it "a beautiful testament to what matters most in life," while former President Jimmy Carter praised it as "an intimate glimpse into the sanctity of unconditional love." In a world obsessed with biological connections, Albom's story challenges our very definition of family, showing how love-not DNA-creates our most profound bonds.
Chapter 2
When a Child Chooses You
"Chika appears to me in my office wearing her blue My Little Pony pajamas, though she died last spring."
With these haunting words, Albom begins his story of Medjerda "Chika" Jeune, a vibrant Haitian girl born three days before the catastrophic 2010 earthquake that killed over 250,000 people. While the disaster spared Chika and her mother, tragedy would still find them-Chika's mother died giving birth to her younger brother. After being passed between relatives, Chika eventually arrived at the Have Faith Haiti Orphanage, which Albom had impulsively taken over after the earthquake.
What makes Chika's story so compelling is not just her circumstances but her personality. Unlike most shy orphans, she looked adults straight in the eye with remarkable boldness. When Albom visited the orphanage in August 2013, Chika-though she didn't know him yet and spoke no English-was determined to be first to greet him, raising her arms to be lifted. This moment captures something profound about children's capacity for connection-how little they need to know you to want your embrace.
The turning point came when Chika was five and began showing troubling symptoms-a drooping face and strange walk. In Haiti, where medical resources are scarce, the diagnosis was blunt: "The child has a mass on her brain... there is no one in Haiti who can help her." With those words, Albom and his wife Janine made a decision that would transform all their lives-they brought Chika to America, determined to find treatment.
What was meant to be a temporary medical journey became something far more profound. Chika's presence in their home-a home that had never known children's laughter or tiny shoes by the door-changed everything. After twenty-seven years of marriage without children, this couple in their late fifties suddenly became de facto parents to a spirited five-year-old who needed their constant care and attention.
Chapter 3
The Battle Against an Undefeated Foe
Chika's diagnosis was devastating-diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG), a grade four brain tumor with a survival rate of zero. Doctors suggested taking her back to Haiti to enjoy her remaining four or five months. But remembering her toughness-how she'd survived an earthquake, slept in sugarcane fields, and endured her mother's death-Albom and Janine decided to fight.
What follows is a medical odyssey spanning continents and experimental treatments. The journey took them from Michigan to New York's Sloan Kettering, where Chika underwent a procedure called convection enhanced delivery (CED), which directly fed cancer-killing drugs into her tumor through a tube in the brain stem. The night before this risky procedure, Albom studied Chika's face, trying to memorize it in case something went wrong. "Why are you looking at me?" she asked. When he apologized, she simply decided, "It's OK. You can look."
Later, they traveled to Germany for immunotherapy treatments with Dr. Stefaan Van Gool, who created vaccines from Chika's own white blood cells to trigger immune responses against the cancer. Despite the seriousness of these treatments, what stands out in Albom's recounting is how happy Chika was during their time in Cologne-decorating their small apartment with Magic Marker drawings, singing loudly through the streets, and exclaiming in wonder at the massive Kolner Dom cathedral: "Oh, no, I never see something like THAT before!"
Throughout their battle, Albom and Janine tried everything medically possible-Avastin infusions, peryllil alcohol through a nebulizer, valproic acid injections, even a PMK inhibitor matched to a mutation in Chika's tumor. Their medical file noted: "Her neurological status has deteriorated acutely... Nevertheless, her guardians continue to want to pursue active treatment." That word-"nevertheless"-perfectly captured their journey. Despite everything contrary, they refused to give up.
Chapter 4
The Wisdom of a Child
What makes this story transcend typical medical narratives is the profound wisdom Chika imparted through her brief life. Albom structures these insights into seven lessons-one for each year of her life.
"I Am Your Protection," Chika's first lesson, came when Albom realized how his understanding of protection had been transformed. Before Haiti, he'd only protected Janine, his career, and himself-their health, money, and reputation. But at the orphanage, and especially with Chika's illness, he learned that true protection isn't about controlling everything but about being present through the uncontrollable.
"Time Changes" emerged from watching Chika's unhurried ways-her fascination with squirrels, clouds, angels, and deliberate sock selection-which forced the always-busy Albom to slow down and match her rhythm. After decades of fearing fatherhood would consume his time and hinder his career, he found himself treasuring hours just watching her. "The most precious thing you can give someone is your time," he writes, "because you can never get it back. When you don't think about getting it back, you've given it in love."
"A Sense of Wonder" came from Chika's ability to find joy in the smallest things. On a trip to Disneyland after her radiation treatments, what captivated her first wasn't the elaborate rides but a simple duck wandering from a pond. "Look! A duck!" she squealed, chasing after it with delight. She drew Albom "down closer to the ground," to see tiny miracles through a child's eyes-burying in leaves, studying ants, making her first snowman, and marveling at the world through magnifying glasses and toy telescopes.
"Kid Tough" reflected Chika's remarkable resilience. During her second CED procedure with radioactive iodine antibody, Albom woke at 3 a.m. to find her standing before him with her catheter stretched taut from her head, announcing: "I want to go to the toy store." The medical staff was astonished-no patient had ever gotten out of bed during that procedure. When the tumor grew again, she adapted to crawling instead of walking, accepting new limitations while giving comfort even as others tried comforting her.
Chapter 5
When Children Are Yours and Not Yours
Perhaps the most poignant lesson Chika taught was about the true nature of family. Albom recalls being repeatedly stung when well-meaning friends would say, "It's great what you're doing for a child that's not yours." These comments, though intended as compliments, revealed deep-seated assumptions about what constitutes a "real" family. He remembers a touching moment when Chika compared their reflections in a mirror, not registering their different skin colors but simply pointing excitedly to a mole on his wrist that fascinated her. "Look, Mister Mitch!" she would say, completely unburdened by the artificial barriers adults often construct.
This experience forced him to confront fundamental questions about parenthood and the essence of family bonds. After witnessing countless examples of both devoted adoptive parents who would move mountains for their children and negligent biological ones who abandoned their responsibilities, he concluded that love, not biology, determines our deepest connections. "I wonder if anyone has blind claim over a child," he writes, "save for God." Through daily routines, midnight fevers, doctor visits, and countless moments of joy and worry, Albom discovered that parenthood is earned through presence and dedication, not bestowed by genetics.
The transformation in Albom's marriage was equally profound and unexpected. Seeing Janine's maternal instincts emerge gave him a deeper appreciation for new dimensions of his wife he had never witnessed in their decades together. It was Janine who naturally took on the intimate daily rituals - bathing and dressing Chika, carefully picking out her Mary Jane shoes, and patiently putting clips in her hair while telling stories. When Chika randomly asked during one of these moments, "If I get married and have to go potty, who will help me out of my wedding dress?" Janine simply answered without hesitation, "I will." This simple exchange captured the depth of commitment that had developed, extending far into an imagined future.
Far from diminishing their relationship as Albom had once feared, Chika's arrival triggered something transformative - "a splash of color on our familiar canvas." Their marriage didn't become less intimate or focused; instead, it expanded and deepened to include this third person who needed them both. The couple discovered new ways of expressing love, not just to Chika but to each other through their shared care for her. Their definition of family evolved from a duo into a trio, proving that hearts have an infinite capacity to grow when love enters the equation.
Chapter 6
The Final Lessons
As Chika's condition deteriorated, her physical abilities declined dramatically, but her spirit remained indomitable. Her once-energetic steps became uncertain, her clear speech grew slurred, yet her personality continued to shine through every challenge. One afternoon when she could no longer walk independently, they were coloring at the kitchen table, sharing a pack of crayons and drawing animals, when Albom realized he was late for work. When he stood to leave, she protested, "No, no. Stay and color," her voice small but determined.
"Chika, I have to work," he explained, already feeling the pull of her wisdom.
"Mister Mitch, I have to play," she countered, crossing her arms stubbornly with the same fierce determination she'd shown throughout her illness. "Your job is carrying me." The simple profundity of a child's logic stopped him in his tracks.
That sentence became the foundation of his final lesson from her: "What we carry defines who we are. And the effort we make is our legacy." The weight of her words would stay with him forever, transforming his understanding of purpose and responsibility.
By February 2017, Chika was in her twenty-first month battling DIPG, far exceeding the typical prognosis. For the first time in thirty-two years of his journalism career, Albom skipped covering the Super Bowl, choosing instead to spend a quiet evening watching Mr. Peabody & Sherman with Chika, treasuring these precious moments. The tumor had "grown quite scandalous" as her doctor put it, using clinical language to describe an increasingly dire situation. She needed a feeding tube and multiple daily medications through her PICC line, turning their home into something resembling a small hospital ward.
Despite all this medical apparatus, she remained quintessentially Chika - her personality undiminished by the equipment surrounding her. She found ways to communicate her wishes, dipping her head slightly to show which doll she wanted at night, waving wobbly but enthusiastic hellos during FaceTime calls with the Haiti kids who missed her terribly. On her seventh birthday, they transformed their home into a magical kingdom. They dressed her in her favorite yellow Belle dress from Beauty and the Beast, carefully working around her medical equipment, and when she was wheeled in, Albom played "Happy Birthday" on the piano, just as he had done in happier times. Two professional "princesses" attended as Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty, making her fantasy come true. Despite her weakened condition, she lit up with pure joy, her smile as radiant as ever, proving that even in the darkest moments, a child's capacity for happiness remains undiminished.
Chapter 7
A Farewell Without Goodbye
On April 7, 2017, just after lunchtime, "with the sun high like an island sky," Chika began to say goodbye. Janine got in one side of her bed, Albom got in the other, and they held her the way they did in Germany when she told them to kiss and live happily ever after. Photos flashed silently on the bedroom TV-Chika wearing swimming goggles, playing in a sandbox, slurping ice cream.
"We love you, Chika," Albom repeated softly. "We love you so much..."
They rubbed her fingers, shoulders, and cheeks, which to the end had a softness they've never found anywhere else on Earth. They counted her breaths as they slowed-five in a minute, then four, then three.
Finally Janine, tears dripping down her cheeks, whispered, "It's all right now, Chika... You can go be with your mommy in heaven."
Two breaths.
One.
Chika was buried in Haiti on April 15, 2017. Her grave marker bore the words from a song she loved to sing: "MWEN SE PITIT BONDYE" ("I am a child of God"). At the orphanage, the children released three dozen pink balloons in her honor, which lifted into the air over Port-au-Prince.
In a remarkable twist of fate, Albom met Chika's younger brother Moise at the funeral. The three-year-old looked so much like her that Albom almost lost his breath. By day's end, Moise's guardian-Chika's uncle-asked if the orphanage could take him in, as they had done with Chika. Today, both Moise and Chika's sister Mirlanda live at the Have Faith Haiti Orphanage.
Chapter 8
The Legacy of a Short Life
What haunts Albom most is not Chika's struggle or disease, but the growing up she missed-the time she didn't get, the future she never saw. He imagines her first day of school, learning to ride a bike, graduating high school, falling in love - all the milestones that were denied to her. But he concludes with a profound realization: "None of us are assured tomorrow. It's what we do with today that makes an impact. Chika filled every day." She packed more life, joy, and wisdom into her seven years than many do in seventy.
People often ask what he learned from this experience. His answer is simple yet profound: "Families are like pieces of art, made from many materials. Sometimes from birth, sometimes melded, sometimes just time and circumstance mixing together, like eggs scrambled in a Michigan kitchen." This metaphor perfectly captures how Chika transformed from an orphan in Haiti to their daughter in Detroit, proving that love transcends blood ties, borders, and conventional definitions of family.
The impact of losing Chika taught them that grief and gratitude can coexist: "We did not lose a child. We were given one. And she was glorious." Each memory, from her infectious laugh to her determined spirit, became a gift they would treasure forever. Even in her illness, she showed remarkable courage, facing treatments with a strength that inspired everyone around her.
In the years since Chika's passing, her impact continues to ripple outward in remarkable ways. Emmanuel, one of the older boys from the orphanage, was so moved by her story that he is now studying to be a doctor, hoping to help children facing similar battles. The orphanage has undergone significant transformation, expanding to include a music room where children learn instruments, a planting garden that teaches sustainability, and new educational opportunities that prepare students for higher education. These changes reflect Chika's love for music, nature, and learning.
Albom himself has undergone the most profound transformation-from a man who once feared fatherhood would diminish his creative life and career to someone who understands that love only multiplies when shared. Through Chika, he learned that being a parent isn't about what you give up, but what you gain: perspective, purpose, and unconditional love.
All author profits from this book go to the Have Faith Haiti Orphanage, ensuring that Chika's legacy continues to create opportunities for other children like her. The funds support education, healthcare, and basic needs for dozens of children who, despite being born into challenging circumstances, have the potential to transform not just their own lives but the lives of everyone they touch. Through this ongoing commitment, Chika's story continues to change lives, proving that a life's impact isn't measured in years, but in the hearts touched and the changes inspired.
Chapter 9
The Eternal Connection
Throughout the book, Albom describes poignant conversations with Chika after her death-imaginary visitations that occur in quiet moments, often in his office. She appears wearing her favorite outfits: sometimes her cherished My Little Pony pajamas, other times the Belle dress from Beauty and the Beast that made her feel like a princess. These passages masterfully blur the line between memory, imagination, and something more spiritual, suggesting that the bonds between parent and child transcend physical existence.
These ethereal encounters follow a pattern, each revealing different aspects of their relationship and Albom's ongoing grief process. Sometimes Chika appears playful and mischievous, as she was in life; other times, she seems wise beyond her years, offering profound insights that help Albom process his loss. The conversations feel both surreal and deeply authentic, capturing the way grief can make the impossible seem natural.
In their final and most moving "conversation," Albom expresses what he had perhaps always wanted to tell her: "You weren't my child. But you were my child to me. I couldn't have loved you more, and Miss Janine couldn't have loved you more. Wherever you went after leaving this earth, you went as part of a family-actually, a lot of families. You made us a family, Chika." These words encapsulate the essence of chosen family and the transformative power of love that transcends biological connections.
The response he receives marks a pivotal moment - Chika throws open her arms, and for the first and only time in these visitations, the barrier between the physical and spiritual worlds seems to dissolve. He can touch her again, feeling "her forearms around my neck, her soft cheeks and braided hair against my temples." The detail of how perfectly she fits against him, as if she never left, speaks to the permanence of their bond.
The scene reaches its emotional crescendo with a familiar game they used to play. She leans back, smiles with that characteristic sparkle in her eyes, and playfully pulls her pajama top over her head. "Where is Chika?" she asks, recreating a moment they shared countless times during her life. When she puts her hand against his heart and declares, "There she is!" the gesture becomes a powerful metaphor for how we carry those we've lost.
In this tender moment, Albom captures the complex nature of grief and love - how those we lose remain with us not just in memories but in the fundamental ways they've transformed our hearts forever. Through this scene, he illustrates that death ends a life but not a relationship. Chika may have lived only seven years, but her impact will resonate through generations, teaching us that the measure of a life lies not in its duration but in its depth of connection and the love it inspires in others.
Chapter 10
The Transformative Power of Unconditional Love
Finding Chika stands as a testament to love's transformative power-how it can cross oceans, transcend biology, and find meaning even in the most heartbreaking circumstances. Through Chika's story, we learn that parenthood isn't about perfect conditions or biological connections; it's about showing up, being present, and carrying each other through life's most difficult moments. The bond between Albom, his wife Janine, and Chika demonstrates how love can flourish in unexpected places, creating family ties that defy conventional definitions.
The journey with Chika reveals how unconditional love transforms not only the recipient but also the giver. Albom and his wife discovered new depths of resilience, patience, and joy they never knew they possessed. From late-night hospital vigils to playful moments in their home, every experience strengthened their commitment to Chika and reshaped their understanding of what it means to be parents.
For anyone who has loved a child-whether by birth, adoption, or circumstance-this book offers a profound reminder that our capacity to love is limitless. The story illustrates how children can enter our lives through various paths, each equally meaningful and transformative. Through Chika's presence, the Alboms experienced the full spectrum of parental love: the pride in small achievements, the worry during illness, the joy in daily discoveries, and the deep ache of anticipated loss.
For those who have lost someone precious, it provides comfort in knowing that connections forged in love never truly end. Albom's narrative shows how love continues to evolve even after physical separation, living on through memories, lessons learned, and the ways we choose to honor those we've lost. The book demonstrates how grief and love can coexist, each making the other more profound and meaningful.
And for everyone navigating life's uncertainties, it demonstrates that even in our most vulnerable moments, we can find strength, purpose, and unexpected joy. Chika's story teaches us that true love doesn't require perfect circumstances or guaranteed outcomes-it simply requires an open heart and the courage to embrace whatever comes.
As Albom writes in the book's final pages: "No matter how a family comes together or comes apart, this is true: you cannot lose a child. We did not lose a child. We were given one. And she was glorious." These words encapsulate the enduring message that love transcends traditional boundaries, transforms lives, and leaves an indelible mark on our hearts, regardless of time or circumstance.
