goes well. I am not very patient...I am nervous....I do not like to wait for anything. Needless to say, this has stretched me in ways that I have needed stretching. Except for getting all our paperwork in, I have absolutely no control over what is happening. Things have gone smoothly for us during this time. It is just a lot of waiting. If you have known our family for more than about 5 years, you know we have had a time of these kinds of processes. I suppose that I am a "better" waiter than I was, just not a great one. I am excited, terrified, emotional, and jittery. BUT, you all have been so incredibly supportive. It is so neat to hear your encouraging words, you excitement, and blessings. I just love to hear my friend Jen clap her hands together and say "I-am-so-excited-for-you!"
And she says it often......and it warms my heart. I will post as soon as we hear the outcome of court. We may hear Saturday or Sunday....
Here a few posts from our group this week. Both of them were touching...
"Allow me to share a story about my daughter, Kalkidan, who is 8 years old and has been home from Ethiopia for 3 and a half months. We have been playing an improvised game at dinner, using index cards labeled "wisdom," "loyalty," "cooperation, " etc. We discuss the meaning of the word and I asked Dani to come up with an example to write on the other side of the card. After a discussion of "courage," I asked her for an example. "In Ethiopia I go with you but I don't know you."For those of you who are adopting or have adopted older children, please bear in mind the amazing courage of the kids who stand up to take a stranger's hand and follow her to a new home. And I thank AAI and the staff at Layla House for giving kids the solid ground that makes such courage possible.
Cheers, Jennifer"
And another one
"Basically, last time we went to the embassy in Ethiopia for Rebka and Hana in March 2006, I wore khakis, a shirt and sweater and mules. Justin wore a smart-casual outfit but it was more casual than smart. He wore sneakers - the only shoes he took with him on the trip. I dressed the girls up though. We felt comfortable with our clothing choices then.However, this time I'm going to wear a skirt, long-sleeved blouse, dressier shoes and maybe even a scarf around my shoulders. I'm going to encourage Justin and the boys to wear a nice outfit with shoes other than sneakers.Now that I spend a lot of time in the Ethiopian-American community, I think they altered my way of thinking about some things.Yes, considering the long, frustrating adoption process, the visit to the embassy is pretty much a technicality and akin to a DMV visit for adoptive families.But consider their perspective. Likely the waiting room will be packed with scared, nervous Ethiopians awaiting their embassy interview. They will be hoping and praying they manage to persuade a grumpy, tired American worker to grant a visa to an ailing grandmother or the children of a mother who won the lottery years ago and settled herself in America. Most of those people will be denied their wish and many of them will be treated gruffly. The interview costs them a fortune just to attempt to get a visa - even for a visit to America.
I've heard of embassy workers not even looking up from their paperwork to take a moment to make eye contact with the Ethiopian standing before them asking for a chance at a future in America. It can be a humiliating, degrading experience for many of them - and they know that's how it's likely going to go while they're sitting there watching us looking bored and confident in our success.We lucky Americans, appearing in sneakers and a short sleeved shirt, make it all look so effortless.So I'm thinking this time I'm going to wear an outfit that reflects my understanding of and respect for the effort *they* are making when they're at the embassy. Maybe, while they're staring at me, as they sit there with not much else to do in the waiting room, they'll think I made a good first impression. Hopefully, my effort will shine through and I'll help them form a more positive impression of American families there to whisk away Ethiopia's children.The habesha visa applicants at the embassy that day would wear a ball gown or tuxedo if they knew it would give them a better chance of obtaining the golden ticket to America. I can imagine where our casual appearance would feel like salt in their probable wound that day.
Randi in NJ"
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