Courtney called me on Wednesday and told me she had "Good news, bad news, and crazy news, which did I want first?"
I don't remember which news I requested but I got the crazy first. They had found Lisa after she went missing months ago. I forgot who Lisa was and so that news fell flat.
The bad news was that they had to cut Christmas a tad short, followed by the good news that they would be traveling to Ethiopia to start the process of actually bringing Natnael home. They had received word of the court date.
Now to me, the rest of the conversation turned into the crazy news part of the call.
Of course, I was excited about the travels. The court date means they are getting close to our meeting Natnael when he comes home. It also means that Courtney, Paul, and Tizita are able to meet Natnael, but must say good bye and leave him in the Care Center until they can officially bring him home in a few months. So the craziness did not hit yet...
Courtney announced that they would be vacationing in Ethiopia, seeing sights, etc from Jan. 2 - 25. I almost lost it right there. For many, many reasons which shall remain off of this post, I saw so many red flags with this whole idea and I voiced those opinions. Courtney graciously listened to my ramblings which at times wandered far from the subject at hand, but their final decision was of course, their final decision as it should be. I hung up feeling very mixed about this long, emotional journey they were about to embark upon. It especially bothered me that they would even consider taking Tiz along for that amount of time.
I kept all of this to myself, well, except for telling John who had the same feelings as I did. I was like Mary, I just pondered all these things in my heart and I prayed about them.
The next day, I had come to small terms with the whole scenario and felt a bit better. I got home from work, opened my FB messages and found an answer to my prayers. Courtney and Paul, after extensive research and prayers had decided to travel without Tiz and only be gone from Jan. 2 - 11. God had answered all our prayers.
In my heart, I know the hardest part of this trip will be getting back on a plane without their son. Leaving him behind after meeting him, playing with him, hugging him, etc. will be heartwrenching. I cannot even imagine what Courtney and Paul will be feeling on that plane ride home. For those of you who do not remember or are new to this blog, adoption laws have changed in Ethiopia since Tiz came home. They only had to travel once at that time and she returned with them immediately upon meeting her. Now you must travel twice, once for the court date and once to bring your child home. Emotional, stressful, hard...
So, as we get ready to celebrate CHRISTmas with our family, this year, we will be missing one little piece of the puzzle, but we know we are one step closer to meeting our little man.
Please keep Courtney and Paul in your prayers. Pray for safe travels, a smooth court hearing, a wonderful meeting with Natnael, and strong hearts as they return home with empty hands, but full hearts.
Note to Natnael: Mama and Papa will be there before you know it!
No comments:
Post a Comment