Today was not really what we expected. We have been planning today for a long time, and I must be honest that I had it pictured a hundred different ways in my mind. It didn’t turn out like any of the ways that we had pictured.
Everything was going pretty much as planned. Typical day with a visit to the Inspector and then to the Children’s Home for the meeting with the Inspector, Director of Social Services, the Children’s Home Director, the Children’s Home Psychologist, and the Doctor. While we were waiting outside the Children’s Home for that meeting, the Director sent one of the workers out to invite us inside to wait in the library. Nice! After a time, the Director brought Irena, the caregiver who came to Mississippi last summer by the Library! We had a big reunion! It was great!!!! Irena took us to see her group and we saw one of the girls from the summer and two of the girls who were supposed to come but were prevented by travel problems. They showed us their school work and we laughed with them for a little while. It was good. Then it came time for our meeting. Just before our meeting began, N popped in. It was a little weird. She seemed happy to see us but something seemed wrong. It was hard to place. The Director asked her to leave (that much we got) and something was said about K and then our meeting began. From there, everything settled in as expected. We got information about the girls. We learned how they got to the orphanage, about their health, and etc. Then, it was time to sit down with them and ask them. The Director suggested that we go with Galya, our facilitator, to the Library with the girls to be with them and talk to them. So, we did. It was awkward at best. N greeted us more warmly, but K greeted us like a shy girl who was scared. We tried to make a little small talk. No good. So, we went ahead and asked them...and they said they would think about it and tell us later. N was the spokeswoman. K just welled up with tears. Wow! Not what I was expecting.... Not yes. Not no. Wait. So, we all went back to the Director’s office, and the meeting broke up with the promise to meet again at 2:30 tomorrow afternoon. The girls hadn’t eaten lunch, so the Director said that they would eat lunch and meet us back at the Library and we could visit until 4. They stayed gone a long time. I am sure much more than lunch was going on to be sure. When they finally came back from lunch, we were able to talk for an hour or so before we decided it was best to let them have time to be alone to visit and decide. The time we spent with them seemed to go well. We explained why we had taken so long to come and why we not been able to give them any advance warning that we intended to come and adopt them, but there was one strange piece to the puzzle that we cannot figure out. N seemed to think that we had intended to adopt someone else before coming for her. We tried to reassure her that was never the case. They were always our first choice. I don’t really know what she means. I don’t know if she know that we were in Irena’s group today and thought we were looking at another child and does not understand the process. I really just don’t know. What I do feel is that this is a spiritual battle at the deepest level. The enemy does not want these girls to come to Hattiesburg under the influence of the gospel. We were talking about it with our facilitator before we went to the orphanage. Please pray with us that this barrier would be torn down. K is a shy young woman with a load of hurts and it shows. N is leaving tomorrow morning for a singing competition in western Ukraine. She will be gone until December 22 and will have to write a letter before she leaves in the morning to make her decision whether or not to be adopted. We will get to spend the next several days with K alone. Please pray that a bond of trust begins to be built with her. So, we are praying and trying to adjust to our new surroundings...trusting God that His plan is working out in His time and in His way. They don’t all have to be Kodak moments....do they? Blessings, Rick
Everything was going pretty much as planned. Typical day with a visit to the Inspector and then to the Children’s Home for the meeting with the Inspector, Director of Social Services, the Children’s Home Director, the Children’s Home Psychologist, and the Doctor. While we were waiting outside the Children’s Home for that meeting, the Director sent one of the workers out to invite us inside to wait in the library. Nice! After a time, the Director brought Irena, the caregiver who came to Mississippi last summer by the Library! We had a big reunion! It was great!!!! Irena took us to see her group and we saw one of the girls from the summer and two of the girls who were supposed to come but were prevented by travel problems. They showed us their school work and we laughed with them for a little while. It was good. Then it came time for our meeting. Just before our meeting began, N popped in. It was a little weird. She seemed happy to see us but something seemed wrong. It was hard to place. The Director asked her to leave (that much we got) and something was said about K and then our meeting began. From there, everything settled in as expected. We got information about the girls. We learned how they got to the orphanage, about their health, and etc. Then, it was time to sit down with them and ask them. The Director suggested that we go with Galya, our facilitator, to the Library with the girls to be with them and talk to them. So, we did. It was awkward at best. N greeted us more warmly, but K greeted us like a shy girl who was scared. We tried to make a little small talk. No good. So, we went ahead and asked them...and they said they would think about it and tell us later. N was the spokeswoman. K just welled up with tears. Wow! Not what I was expecting.... Not yes. Not no. Wait. So, we all went back to the Director’s office, and the meeting broke up with the promise to meet again at 2:30 tomorrow afternoon. The girls hadn’t eaten lunch, so the Director said that they would eat lunch and meet us back at the Library and we could visit until 4. They stayed gone a long time. I am sure much more than lunch was going on to be sure. When they finally came back from lunch, we were able to talk for an hour or so before we decided it was best to let them have time to be alone to visit and decide. The time we spent with them seemed to go well. We explained why we had taken so long to come and why we not been able to give them any advance warning that we intended to come and adopt them, but there was one strange piece to the puzzle that we cannot figure out. N seemed to think that we had intended to adopt someone else before coming for her. We tried to reassure her that was never the case. They were always our first choice. I don’t really know what she means. I don’t know if she know that we were in Irena’s group today and thought we were looking at another child and does not understand the process. I really just don’t know. What I do feel is that this is a spiritual battle at the deepest level. The enemy does not want these girls to come to Hattiesburg under the influence of the gospel. We were talking about it with our facilitator before we went to the orphanage. Please pray with us that this barrier would be torn down. K is a shy young woman with a load of hurts and it shows. N is leaving tomorrow morning for a singing competition in western Ukraine. She will be gone until December 22 and will have to write a letter before she leaves in the morning to make her decision whether or not to be adopted. We will get to spend the next several days with K alone. Please pray that a bond of trust begins to be built with her. So, we are praying and trying to adjust to our new surroundings...trusting God that His plan is working out in His time and in His way. They don’t all have to be Kodak moments....do they? Blessings, Rick
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