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Kelly
What do I know for sure? Life is complicated, difficult, heartbreaking, unpredictable, but it is also beautiful, wonderful, heartwarming, and joy-filled. Sometimes the journey isn’t what you thought it would be. Sometimes the curves take you places you didn’t set out to go. I know it’s not about the destination. It’s about following where God leads and trusting in His plan even when it doesn’t make sense to you.
I haven’t updated about Kelly in a while because it’s just been too hard on my heart. There are so many emotions and thoughts that I just couldn’t get the words down on paper in any coherent way. Have you ever just not wanted to do something because it made it way too real? That is where I am at. This is going to be long. I’ve tried to cut it down, but there’s so much I want to say. I thought about doing it in a couple of posts, but I just want to be done thinking about it. So here goes, time to pull off the band-aid quickly….
Kelly does not wish to be adopted.
Well, even that is not the whole truth. She doesn’t want to leave China. She doesn’t want to be adopted by foreigners. She doesn’t want to learn a new language and come to a new country and I can’t blame her. I’m not sure I could have done it. I have older daughters. I know Hope wouldn’t have wanted to leave her home and everything she knew and loved. Gracie might have been more open to it and considered it an adventure. Jasmine left China but she had no options and nothing waiting for her there so she was able to embrace all that we offered. Cassie would have trusted God and His plan and done whatever she felt He was leading her to do.
For the past two months, we have known that Kelly has had great reservations about being adopted. We have not said anything because we were hoping it was just the usual “I am afraid” response. We hoped and prayed she would embrace the thought of family even though she was afraid.
As you know months ago, I saw Kelly and Amanda’s pictures on some Facebook advocacy page. Things just never moved forward with Amanda. There were many roadblocks and it just didn’t seem right, but with Kelly the more I read about her the more I cared. I knew that my heart was moved but I wanted to be sure it wasn’t just an emotional response. I prayed and prayed some more and decided to ask more questions. I wanted all the information I could get on her so I posted a comment and people responded. I was told that I should talk to two specific people, one of whom had met her and the other who had hoped to adopt Kelly herself. From these two people, I got the names of two other people who had cared for Kelly in the group home.
I asked every question I could. The most important questions being “Does she really want a family, would she be okay with a large family, and does she want to come to America?”. I think we all like to think, “Well, who wouldn’t want to come to America and have a family?”, but the truth is sometimes older children do not wish to leave their birth country and everything they know and hold dear. By the time these older children are teenagers, they have come to terms with the fact that a family may not be coming. They are used to caring for themselves and can be very independent.
As a family, we discussed adopting Kelly. We talked with our agency and asked them what the chances were of adopting an aging out teenage girl in 170 days. Our agency informed us everything would have to go perfectly, but it was possible. We decided to take a chance, we submitted our LOI, and waited for PA. After PA you are allowed to send letters, gifts, and pictures. We received our PA and sent a care package to Kelly.
After we knew she got our package, we talked to people again. She had seen our pictures and we wanted to be sure she was okay with a big family. We continued to ask if she really wanted a family. We tried in many different ways and we never got the response we wanted. We heard over and over again that she wasn’t sure and that she was afraid. We never heard the words, “She really wants a family but is afraid.” You can overcome fear if the want for a family is greater than the fear. We understood that she would be fearful, everything in her life was about to change. We understood it would take time for her to adjust to her new life. No one can be expected to give up everything they hold dear and not have it affect them.
Instead of hearing that she wanted a family, we heard over and over again, “We are trying to convince her this is the best thing for her.” We did everything we could to ease her mind. We talked to people who were close to her. We sent her letters in her care package. We let her know about our blog. We asked them to share our Facebook page with her so she could see videos and pictures of our family. We asked to Skype with her.
We were allowed to Skype and we thought things had gone well. She didn’t seem afraid while Skyping. She was laughing and smiling the whole time. Her body language was relaxed and open. At the end of the call, we had told Kelly to let them know if she had more questions. We waited a few days and we heard nothing. I sent an e-mail to the director of the group home asking him if she had more questions and he said skyping made her fear worse. She was even more afraid and was very unsure about whether or not she wanted to be adopted.
One of the main things that stood out to me was that after we skyped, she said all the littles were overwhelming. They were very sweet during the Skype conversation. They all took turns and said “Hi!”. They waved and Evie even blew her a kiss. It wasn’t anything compared to what our house is like. They are very busy little people. I was hoping that she would see how much they loved her, but it had the opposite affect.
There were signs from the beginning that things may have not been what we were told. We thought she really wanted a family and was okay with going to America. As I said before, the truth was she wanted a family, but she never wanted to leave China. There were signs all along the process. We heard words like “She didn’t know she could be adopted. She never thought that it would happen. She was surprised by it. She was okay if the paper work did or didn’t get done.”
The issue is she has people she loves at the group home. She has a very close friend who she helps with schooling. She cares about all the little ones that are there. She considers these people her family. She sings with them. She has art lessons and piano lessons. She can work in their bakery when she’s of age. She won’t be out on the street. In her mind, she has a whole lot to lose and she has no clue what she would gain.
With all the information we had, we talked to our agency. After much group discussion within the agency and with our family, we knew we had two options. First, we could travel and hope that we could convince her to be adopted. But even as we discussed that, we were told by her group home that they would not force her to sign. They were going to let it be her decision. Second, we could give her a deadline by which to make her decision. She had been wavering for months and it wasn’t getting better. In fact, it seemed it was getting worse. We prayed and considered all the options. We discussed it again with our agency, who was very good at telling us the pros and cons. They shared with us previous stories, the kids who didn’t sign, the parents who landed in China only to be told no before they even met the child, and the stories where children were convinced to sign, forced to sign, and what happened when they came home.
We decided it would be better to give Kelly a deadline before we traveled. We didn’t want to take the chance of traveling to China only to have Kelly refuse to sign the paperwork. In China, if you are ten or older, you have to agree to the adoption. You have to sign forms stating you wish to be adopted. I have heard others share their stories on a Facebook group. They talked of forcing the child to sign. I have heard the threats that were said by many different parties and the fights that ensued. As I said before, we had previously talked with the director of the group home and he said they would leave the decision up to her. They would not force her to sign. We knew it had to be Kelly’s decision and we knew she needed a deadline. She is painfully shy and neither Dan or I thought standing in front of her trying to convince her would really help anything.
We were at a critical point in the adoption process, we needed to file for her visa. We needed to know one way or the other. It was agreed upon that she would have until Friday, July 18th, to decide. They e-mailed and asked if they could have until Monday, the 21st, to decide and we agreed. When we didn’t hear anything on Monday, we e-mailed again. The response we got was that Kelly had a cold and they couldn’t get an answer. My heart dropped. I knew what that meant. That’s not a real excuse for not answering. I e-mailed again and he said, “Kelly may one day regret this decision, but she does not wish to be adopted. She does not want to leave China.”
I cried tears much like I did with Kyle. The dream of a life was there, but it wasn’t meant to be. We are heartbroken to say the least. The children have been in tears. Jasmine doesn’t understand. If you remember our journey to another aging out daughter began because Jasmine wanted to help another girl much like herself. Jasmine has said over and over again, “But she doesn’t understand what family means.”
I have prayed over and over again. Kelly’s picture is on my homescreen of my phone and my computer. Every time her picture came on the screen, I prayed for clarity for her. I prayed that God’s will would be done and I truly meant it. But being an imperfect human I hoped or assumed that God’s plan would mean Kelly would be my daughter. It’s funny how we do that. Like God is a magic genie and all our wishes will just come true if we pray hard enough.
The verse does say, “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.” Matthew 21:22
But there is also a verse that says, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD. Isaiah 55:8
Someone asked me if I was angry at God. I’m not angry at God. I can’t be angry at God because things didn’t work out the way I had hoped. Kelly has free will. I cannot make Kelly do what I wish. I can’t possibly know why we were lead down this path, but I still believe it was God who sent us on this journey. Too many doors were opened, too many signs lead to Kelly for it to not be from God.
All the signs lead to this having a happy ending, at least on our end. We’ve never had an adoption go so smoothly. Everyone was on board with the expediting and were more than gracious to speed our paperwork up. Our agency has gone above and beyond. We have been overwhelmed with the support and caring that we have received. Everything was going as planned. We were at that very last stage – requesting a visa, which leads to the Article 5 being issued, which leads to the consulate appointment and travel approval. We had 30 days left and it was more than doable. We were all set.
I have tried to wrap my head around this. I have cried many tears grieving over my lost dreams. I saw her in the girl’s room. We bought her a new bed. The girls and I bought her clothes that we thought she would love based on the pictures we’ve seen of her. We know her favorite color was blue so we bought her a beautiful blue comforter. She has jewelry and hairbows. I saw myself brushing her pretty hair and letting her know how beautiful she is. I am her mama in my heart and I would be lying if I said this doesn’t hurt.
I don’t understand. I just can’t see the big picture. I can see little bits of what I have learned. I have seen what group homes do for children. These homes are proof that there are better ways to raise children even if they can’t have a forever family. I have seen the other side of teen adoption. I belong to groups where I have heard all sorts of outcomes. My eyes have definitely been opened. I know it doesn’t always go like it has with Jasmine. I have learned how to expedite and I have seen how well the adoption process works if everyone moves stuff along. I have always wanted to speak to our congressman and tell them changes needed to be made to speed the process up, to cut out the redundancy of costs and paperwork, get rid of some of the unnecessary paperwork, and now I know ways that it can happen.
But if I was to tell the truth, I don’t want to be more informed. I want to be a mama to a little girl half way around the world who has no clue what that means and who doesn’t want the same thing.
So for now, we will try to help her in any way we can. We will stay in touch if she lets us. We will sponsor her. We have let them know we will help with her education or anything else that may come up. I am comforted by the fact that Kelly has people who love her there. She has friends and many who she considers family. She knows God. She has a love for God that is beautiful. There is a video of her singing and signing on Agape’s Facebook page. I believe God must have plans for her there. Maybe she just needed to know that a family would fight for her. I know I don’t have the answers, but I am placing my trust in Him who’s ways are not my ways.
Please keep Kelly in your prayers especially on August 17th, which is her birthday. No matter how sure she is of her decision turning 14 will make it very real. Also, please say specific prayers for healing on her feet, she has some really bad blisters and sores on them right now. Thank you for supporting us and encouraging us on this journey. Please consider supporting Agape Family Life House and the other group homes in China and around the world trying to make it a better place for children who wait.
The truth is we wish no child had to leave their families, but the world is not perfect. There are many ways to help: Support families that are stuck in poverty so their families may stay intact. Support the group homes that are doing the very best they can for the children in their care. Support groups that are providing surgeries for children in need. Support those that are called to adopt. And finally, if you are being called to adopt yourself, step out of that comfort zone, and see what God has in store for you.
