Eventful Day

July 1st

Yesterday seemed like a blur. It was a series of highs and lows. That was the day that it was unlikely that we would be able to do everything that we had hoped to do. Rather than doing less then we hoped we actually did more. Reflecting back makes us truly grateful for God’s protection and provision.

We woke early to get a notary signature. That is a much longer and more expensive process in Russia than the US. We then went back to the original orphanage to formally decline the referral. We were ambivalent about the trip there. On one hand we did not want to see the girl again and hurt her feelings in any way. We also did not want to offend the orphanage workers who loved the girl very much and who seemed to want her to impress us at our first visit.

On the other hand we wanted to greet her again and give her a gift and our love. The visit could not have gone better. The orphange personnel were gracious and appeared understanding. The girl (we can not give her name) was chearful and enjoyed our visit. She accepted our gift and our love and we said goodbye. That was very hard but we did have peace that we made the right decision. We pray that she will find the right forever family soon.

We then went back to the ministry of education to ask that they give us another referral. They didn't seem very happy but told us they would "try" to get us one. No guarantees! We had a relaxing lunch, prayerfully expecting God to intervene on our behalf.

We were called and aked to rush back to get information on a referral. Her name was Daria (Dasha for short). She was born in August 2000 (4 months younger than Anjaela) and lived in an orphanage 50 kilometers out of the city. She was at camp as well which would involve more driving. We were given a limited amount of information about her and asked if we would like to see her. We accepted, trusting God to work out the details.

We traveled to her town, picked up an "inspector" (a local social worker for the community who would later go to court with us if we officially accept the referral). Then on to the orphanage. We were given her social history (reasons for becoming an orphan, etc.) and medical history. Then on to the camp, another hour away.

The area reminded us of many Central American towns that we have been in, including the roads. The car we drove in was a Daewoo. It was the smallest car that we have ever been in. Russian potholes nearly swallowed it whole. Miraculously, we did not get lost or destroyed by the roads and arrived at her camp.

It is apparently typical for Russian children, whether orphans or not, to attend a camp during part or most of the summer. They get out of the city and into the fresh air. They have activities that are not an option in the city. It was not at all plush, but it was outdoors and clean and the children seemed to be enjoying themselves.

By this time it was 5pm. We wouldn't have long to spend with the girl, and she was not expecting us either. We met her and were struck by her resemblence to Anjaela. She did not smile much but was lovely and seemed very smart. She has a similar complexion to Anjaela and small dimples. Her hair is brown and she has dark eyes. We did our best to make her feel comfortable and visited with her. She liked taking photos with our digital camera. We had brought a sticker book, coloring book, doll, blanket, crayons and carrying case to give her. She seemed to like the doll the most, naming it Alena after the new daughter of one of her orphanage workers.

We were then asked if we wanted to accept her. What could we say? Her medical and social information was acceptable to us, at least what we knew about it. We had all of one hour to visit with a nearly 8 year old girl who did not speak English and who was completely unprepared for our visit. Our decision was not binding if we accepted her and so we did in faith believing that she would fit into our family. We said goodbye and headed back to Nizhny to eat and catch an overnight train to Moscow. Finding sleep was easy.

We write this on our plane back to the US. Our trip was not at all what we thought it would be. We experienced many highs and lows. We truly lived on God’s sufficient grace day by day. We were encouraged to know that you were following along with us on this journey and were praying for us. We believe that Daria (or Dasha, we’re not sure what we will call her yet) is to be our daughter.

We would have loved to spend more time with her to see how we connect. We prayerfully believe that the connection will come soon and that the transition for her and our family will be brief. We always wanted a younger sister for Anjaela, but expected her to be years, not months younger. What we are getting is almost a twin sister for Anjaela. I guess we are qualified to raise a family with children of such similar ages.

Please continue to pray for us in the transition process. Pray for her as well as she tries to understand what it means to join a new family from a different country who speak a different language. She is leaving everything she has ever known.

We love you all. Dasvidanya for now.