Day one: "He is Precious"

What can you write the first time you see your child? What can you say the first time you hold him? You can say, "oh he is beautiful" or "we are so happy to finally get to meet you" but that just doesn't even begin to capture how we felt.

Our travel from Bishkek to Tokmok was an adventure. It took maybe an hour. The countryside was awash in activity and people were always in the process of carrying things from one place to another in a transportation device not nearly big enough for the effort it required. We saw an old sedan with a roof rack that would make any Seattle driver jealous, and strapped to the top were huge pipes, chairs and scrap material that would have been a load for even a contractor making a run to the Home Depot.

One thing that was interesting was the colors. Usually smog and unpaved roads seem to wash out all of the features in a third world country, and leave it one dreary color. Not so with our drive. Cars hummed by a bright burnt orange, an old tractor might have a fresh coat of red paint, and window sills might portray an eye catching baby blue. If felt much like parts of the Caribbean.

The orphanage was on a quiet street well off the main. Our driver let us out and asked us to stay in the courtyard, close to where the photo above was taken. We waited for maybe ten minutes and then out he came carrying the baby we worked so hard and traveled so far to see.

We spent about two hours with him in the courtyard. He never made a sound, and for most of the time was quite sleepy. I am not sure what he thought of all the attention. Again, my words are not skilled enough to tell you even our thoughts.

Here is a beautiful young boy, who was born into some situation that did not allow for his parents to keep him. And even those with a head start lead tough lives in the country he lives. His would be so much tougher, with so little promise. And yet, for him, God seems to have other plans. He has brought us from our soft lives in our comfortable latte world to come and see him. To hopefully bring him home. God bought us with a price that was dear to him... his son. And frequently he used the word adoption to describe it. Being here, and seeing what adoption means for someone who has nothing and doesn't yet even know it, helps me to better understand what God offers us as members of His family. "For what makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?" 1 Corinthians 4:17.

We praise God for him, he is perfect. And we are equally grateful full for the opportunity to meet him, and pray that soon we will bring him home.

We will continue to update all of you as we head out for day #2.