They Told Us So

Page 9 of our Adoption Guide states, “There are many unexpected bumps that can occur during your process, ie. Fingerprints could get lost or need to be retaken (been there, done that at least 6 times), an unforeseen paperwork delay could be encountered (check yes on that one: 12 months), the adoption trip could be delayed or moved forward (yup, experiencing that now), necessary offices in the foreign country could be closed for no reason (we pray no), a judicial authority may delay a court date (yes, ours is two days later than expected, thank the Lord it wasn’t longer), etc. These are only a few examples of the many kinds of delays that are encountered every day…the important thing to remember is to be patient. There is nothing that you cannot handle with a good attitude.” The next paragraph begins, in bold caps, “Three most important things you need: Patience, Patience and Patience”.

Well, there it is. They forgot to mention the onset of bipolar disorder we’ve experienced on several recent occasions. For instance, we were ready to throw in the towel one week before receiving “The Call”. Or, not sleeping last night after figuring out that our expensive one-entry visa may expire before we complete the paperwork prior to leaving Russia. But today we found out we should be able to leave the day our visa expires. That shouldn’t be too stressful.

It’s been a rough week. We’ve been home just over 2 weeks and we feel a bit of uncertainty in many ways. The Russia-Georgia conflict and the American response to it has us feeling distressed. It is our sincere prayer that Russia will not punish us for being American citizens tied to a country with alliances. Our alliance is with our daughter in Russia, a little girl we’ve already fallen hopelessly in love with, whom we pray for every day and night and think about throughout the day. This difficult year and a half process was done with intention and determination. Being in the middle of a conflict like this really makes you think about alliances, countries, politics and the people who live around the world subjected to the decisions made by their country’s leaders.

The Olympic Games signify a friendly competition between individuals who represent countries around the world. The press does a great job of telling the story of athletes from many countries, and it humanizes them so you can celebrate their accomplishments and appreciate the trials they’ve overcome. I find it hard to define the athletes by the country they represent. And so it is with citizens around the world. In a world ruled by few and inhabited by many, it’s hard to judge a citizen by its country, other than by the obvious cultural customs and history.

Our daughter will be a dual citizen of both Russia and the United States. It’s important for us to share with her the history, customs, food, holidays, language, and the people of America and Russia. She will be proud to represent both countries. By adopting our daughter from Russia, we are adopting the Russian people, and our daughter is likewise adopting the Americans. We will align ourselves to each other and to God, and that’s all we’ll need to overcome the challenges ahead.