Come Hail or High Water...

I’ll start by saying we had an incredible meeting with our social worker, Melissa, last night. It was our first of two meetings which will wrap up the homestudy we have been working on these last 4 months.

The part that makes it incredible is not the homestudy meeting: sure, it went well, we answered endless questions about parenting, decision making, finances, plans for discipline, etc. We didn’t even have a chance to be nervous about the meeting: we were unusually distracted by a surprise thunderstorm, and let me tell you, when hail is pounding on your car and lightning just a blink away, you don’t worry too much about anything else.

But the part that impacted us the most were two new friends we met while at our social worker’s home. Melissa has two daughters; she is a single mom who adopted her first child, the youngest daughter, from China; her second child, the oldest daughter, came to her from India. The daughters are incredible. The younger one attached to us immediately. Her bubbly, energetic personality was irresistible. She talked a mile a minute and showered us with both attention and affection. During our individual interviews, we each had a chance to play with her while the other was being questioned. When I completed my portion of the interview, I went downstairs to find Chris who was losing a pillow fight with the little girl. The older daughter was much more reserved; she displayed a silent strength. After hearing about her past experiences in India, and all that she was exposed to at a young age, we knew that her depth of character was just as we perceived it to be: genuine and full of grace. These young women invited us into their lives, into their world, and affirmed the calling in us to share our lives with a similarly special child. The unmistakable acceptance they offered us gave us the confidence we needed to move forward in this adoption process. Melissa and her two daughters made us feel as if we were connected to a circle of those who have experienced what we now only dream of, but what will soon be a reality in our home.

I will never forget these three amazing individuals; they have played such a special part in our journey. And, I must note, we saw a double rainbow while traveling during the storm yesterday. Breathtaking.