Meeting Dad
On the way to the care center, our interpreter indicated that the father of "A", "G", and "T" would be coming to the care center around 10 am to meet us. Their father lives approximately two hours (by car) away from the center in a small village. Ten o'clock came and went. Around 12 pm, our interpreter indicated that the children's father trip had been delayed due to transportation issues and that he would be arriving later. Since the father lives in a remote village, his access to a phone is limited. Someone from the government had to find him to determine whether or not he would still be coming and that he would either arrive later tonight or tomorrow. At 5 pm, one of the many social workers informed us that our kids father would be arriving shortly.
At 6 pm, a sixty year old gentleman walking with a cane came through the front doors of the care center. He was very frail. "A" and "G" greeted their father with hugs and kisses. Through our interpreter, we were able to gather more information about the family.
The father met our children's mother after he served in the war. They both lived in the same village. He provided a dowry in exchange for marriage. He was much older. There are also three older brother who currently live with the father. This is very typical of adoptions in Ethiopia. Families may have 15 or more children, and the younger children are usually adopted out.
The father was a soldier in the war in his younger years. While in the war, he was shot with a bullet in the stomach. The bullet was removed. Most recently, he has had health issues as a result of the earlier shooting. During the entire visit, "A" sat near her father intrigued about everything he said.
The father believed that God had brought the children to us. He was a farmer who struggled to provide for his family due to health conditions. He was unable to provide for his children. Our children's mother passed away in November and they were placed in care shortly after.
At the end, the father spoke with "A" and "G" and instructed them to "be good", "study hard", and "learn different languages". He said "don't worry about your family" and that they had been given the opportunity to go to America. By saying these things to the girls, he gave us his "blessing" of his children. WOW!!
As we write this blog entry, our eyes are filled with the tears with the love that the father had for "A", "G", and "T". We are gratful for the precious gift that he as given to us. In many aspects, the gift of this father is similar to God's love for each of us, a "new" life that he offered to each of us that believe.
Meredith and Jim
2 Corinthians 5:17-"Therefore if anyone is IN Christ, he is a new creation, the old has gone and the new has come."'
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