True Story : Real Winner Never Give Up!

Is the title of today's inspirational message

This is a true story of a young woman who
went through the most gruesome fire. When you
read her story, you’ll realize that your trials are
absolutely nothing compared to what this young
girl went through.
It was September 25, 2000. Maricel Apatan was
an 11-year old girl in Zamboanga. On that day,
this little girl went with her uncle to draw water.
Along the way, four men met them. They were
carrying long knives. They told her uncle to face
down on the ground, and they hacked him on
the neck and killed him.
Maricel was in total shock, especially that the
men were their neighbors. She tried to escape,
but the men ran after her.
She cried, “Kuya, ‘wag po, ‘wag n’yo akong
tagain! Maawa po kayo sa akin!” (“Don’t kill
me! Have mercy on me!”)
But they weren’t listening. With a long knife, a
man slashed her on the neck too.
Maricel fell to the ground and lost
consciousness.
When she woke up, she saw a lot of blood. She
also saw the feet of the men around her, but
she pretended to be dead.
When they walked away, Maricel ran back
home. But along the way, she saw that both her
hands were falling off. Because the men hacked
them too. She cried but she kept running.
Sometimes, she would faint and fall to the
ground. But she’d regain consciousness and
run again.
When she was near her home, Maricel called
her mother.
Upon seeing her daughter, her mother
screamed in terror. She wrapped her bloodied
child in a blanket and carried her to the
hospital.
Here was the problem: From her house to the
highway, it was a 12-kilometer walk. It took
them 4 hours just to reach the highway.
When they arrived in the hospital, the doctors
thought Maricel was going to die. But for 5
hours, they operated on her. It took 25 stitches
to stitch together the long knife wound in her
neck and back.
Maricel barely survived. And she lost both of
her hands.
Ironically, the next day was Maricel’s
birthday. She was 12 years old.
But tragedy didn’t end there. When they went
home, they saw their home was gone. It was
ransacked and burned down by the goons.
Being very poor, Maricel’s family also didn’t
have P50,000 for their hospital bills.
But God sent many angels along the way to
help them.
Archbishop Antonio Ledesma, a distant relative,
paid for hospital bills and helped them bring the
criminals to court. They were sentenced to
prison.
Today, she’s staying with the nuns at Regina
Rosarii with Sr. Eppie Brasil, O.P.
But this is the incredible miracle. Instead of
staying down, Maricel kept running.
Instead of cursing God why she had no hands,
she now uses her wrists in incredible ways that
will boggle your mind.
Maricel was
cited as the
most
industrious,
best in
computer, and
most
courteous in
the School for
Crippled
Children.
In 2008, she
graduated
from a course
in Hotel and
Restaurant
Management. She even received a Gold medal
for Arts and Crafts.
In 2011, she finished her education to be a
chef. Yes, a Chef without hands.
Nothing can stop this young lady from reaching
her dreams.