Sleepless in Europe

Leaving Ukraine

Friday the 26th and Saturday the 27th (a blur).

I write this at 36,000 feet somewhere over Germany headed back to LA by way of Munich, following a 10 hour cross country van ride over snowy, winding 2 lane roads to get to Kiev. We will have a 6 hour layover in Munich, which would be enough time to do some exploring if we can find just a little more energy but let’s back up.

Friday morning Rebecca and Bill had a direct conversation with our guy’s sister. She communicated very clearly that she neither wanted to come to America nor would she allow her brother to come to America. We communicated that we felt her intransigence was a direct threat to her brother’s long term survival. Rebecca shared the story of Solomon deciding which mother was the true mother of a disputed baby, hoping that perhaps the sister would comprehend the concept of putting her brother’s medical needs first. This was another hallway conversation under close supervision by a shelter manager, who had no reluctance at interjecting himself into the conversation, most frequently expressing that the brother could receive whatever care he needed in Ukraine. Not helpful (or true). This was clearly our last meeting with the sister and it did not go well.

We left there pretty depressed and frustrated and headed down to the orphanage to say our goodbyes as it did not appear there was any business left for us to do. The local town officials will make a decision on December 30th in response to our formal request to legally separate the two siblings; however we know that most officials are very much opposed to such separations and some are opposed to adoptions by anyone other than Ukrainians so this is an uphill battle. We arrived at the orphanage in time to enjoy another musical and dress up Christmas party, which was a lot of fun. The children were very excited and we had a chance to visit with several of the kids who visited the United States earlier this year. Lots of photos to share with their host families. The time arrived and we explained to our guy that we had to go home, that we had hoped to take him with us this trip but there was still “paperwork” to complete before he could live with us forever. He took it in stride and we told him we would see him again soon. In a heavy snow squall we walked down the long driveway through the woods, boarded our van and headed back to our apartment to pack up.

As seems to frequently be the case in this process, once it seemed over, it was not. Our facilitator in Kiev called while we were still in the van returning to our apartment and gave us some encouraging news about next week’s meeting. After several phone conversations both with Kiev and stateside adoption experts, we feel we have a fighting chance to separate the siblings and then proceed with the adoption after all (we have no guarantees, but this could be our miracle). Can you say traveling to Ukraine in frigid January? It’s possible…..

We will work stateside on the medical visa paperwork. We hurried back to our apartment, packed everything and met our driver at 5 pm to begin the 10 hour ride to the Kiev airport. We arrived at 3:30 AM and took off about 7 am, exhausted but hopeful.

This has been a truly amazing experience, pushing all five of us at different times and in different ways to the limits of our physical, emotional and spiritual abilities. Was it a waste of time and money? Not for one second. We don’t know if we will successfully adopt or not but we learned a lot about another people, another culture, we helped some kids at an orphanage and we learned a lot about ourselves and our faith. God is good. God cares for all children, even in a place that seems to have institutions that are hostile to their best interests. There are people willing to give so much of themselves to make a difference in the lives of kids who have no one and have nothing. Our hearts are full; we have done all we can do here right now, so we wait upon the Lord with joy and confidence.

'Not that I have already obtained all this or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me Heavenward in Christ Jesus.' Philippians 3:12-14

Nice group shot, American families have Christmas Eve dinner together- a Joyous time for all.

Patrick and Bill trudging through the snow back to the van after saying "see you later" to our little man.

Rachel and Casey in Munich airport- no sleep for 36 hours.

An encouraging sign at Kiev Airport- sums up our visit pretty well.