A Tale of Two Countries

Our first full day as a family began with difficulty and was a long exhausting day of travel and paperwork. With the weight of the reality of having to say goodbye to their friends at the orphanage, Jessica was overcome this morning with doubts about going to America. She questioned Vadim about changing her mind and staying and if Sam could still go if she didn’t. As the conversation progressed, Cyndy and I prayed. Vadim shared with her how hard life would be in Russia for her and Sam, and how much more opportunity there would be for them in America. She worried that she wouldn’t fit in in America, and that learning English would be too hard. They talked for a good long time, all the while her mom and dad prayed silently. Finally, it was time to go to the orphanage and she had decided to stay the course and come to America.

Both parents breathed a sigh of relief and a prayer of thanksgiving! We knew there would be times of doubt and questioning. We just didn’t figure it would come this quickly! Glen whispered to Cyndy, “I’m just glad she had her doubts today and not yesterday in court!”

What these two kids are doing takes a lot of courage. Think about it. Leaving the only life you have ever known, and leaving it so completely that you might never come back. The children in the orphanage are very close to one another; they have to be. It is quite literally “You and me against the world.” Because the society is stacked against them, they are drawn ever so much closer together. It is difficult to leave the only security they have.

This was a hard day for Nathan as well. I don’t know if it was the stress of yesterday or the spiritual struggles of this morning, but today it was very difficult for him to participate and join in. He has been doing very well up to today. Please pray for Nathan. While he has been excited about adding a brother and sister to his family, the reality of that is beyond his comprehension and is definitely a learning process for him also. As I write he is learning to play Go Fish with his brother.

This was a day of running around from place to place. We didn’t stay long at the orphanage before we had to leave to work on getting Jessica and Sam’s passports. The bank was closed in Gorodische so we couldn’t do the banking we need to do (that will happen tomorrow). It was exhausting! Tonight, we watched “Finding Nemo” (in Russian, with English subtitles!). Afterward, Jessica went to bed early and the boys played while Mom read (Dad’s novel!) and Dad wrote this blog.

All in all, we are grateful to God for what He is doing in us and through us. But today we experienced something of the difficulty that is before us. Yesterday was bliss. Today was hard. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. A tale of two countries and one family, joined by divine appointment. God be praised!

Blessings,

The Haworth Family