Hitch in the getalong
It started with what seemed like being called to the principal's office. We were at the Shalom orphanage in Addis Ababa with the rest of our group watching the other families meet their children for the first time, having picked up Julia the day before. We were enjoying the sunshine and then walked over to the Bethany office where it was explained that there has been a change in the circumstances of our adoption. Turns out that when the life book video for our adoption was being prepared, the videographer found out the real identities of the people who found Julia when she had been abandoned. By asking a few questions, she then found the grandmother and even her mother. Thankfully, she was able to get the mother on video tape recording her saying that she knew that she was going to be abandoned and that she wasn't able to care for the child either at the time or in the future. It was clear that Julia was a child that should be available for adoption.
This morning, we went to the US embassy to determine whether or not they would give us a visa given these new circumstances. They told us that we would need to have the adoption amended based on the facts of the case that are now understood. We also met with an Ethiopian attorney who explained what would need to be done and the process that we would need to go through. I'm headed (Ryan) to Awasa tomorrow with the Ethiopian Director for Bethany in the hope that we will be able to bring back the paperwork that is needed to complete the adoption. If the mother is willing to sign the documents, we'll then have them handled through the legal process in Awasa and then bring them back to Addis the next day. I'm told it is about a five hour drive one way, so we'll staying overnight on Tuesday night, returning on Wednesday.
If this all works out with the mother, then we need to go through the court process and make everything official with the new facts. From there, we would then be able to get a visa and be able to return back home.
So, now we're just trying to get our feet underneath us and begin thinking about the changes that will be necessary. Obviously, we'll need to manage expectations with my work, the girls will be all set with my parents (thanks Mom and Dad!), we'll change the flights, and we'll need to figure out where we will stay and for how long. We're hoping that we'll only be about an additional week, but at this point, we're just not sure how long things will take. Easter is a bit of a wild card in that things shut down earlier in the week with Good Friday and potentially earlier on Thursday as well and then Monday is evidently a day that people often take off as well. Given that there are several steps that we need to go through, I think we're anticipating that this might take an additional week or two, even if all goes well and by plan.
Of course, despite my attempt above to just lay out the facts of what is happening, this is a bit of an emotional time for us. Clearly, this wasn't anyone's intention and we're glad that we're working toward a resolution. We're just going to walk this forward one step at a time and see how this can be worked out. We're sure that it will go well, but it will take time and quite a bit of work yet. We're thankful for all of the help we're receiving.
