Outer Space

It is difficult to imagine what D is experiencing right now, but try to imagine what life must be like for him. He has spent his entire life inside the walls of an orphanage and then he is escorted away by yours truly, a man who speaks a foreign language. Things that you and I take for granted are amazing experiences for him. In the last 36 hours, he has ridden in a taxi, spent half a day on a train, gone potty in a public restroom, walked the streets of a cosmopolitan city, walked the isles of a grocery store, experienced the benefits of a luxury apartment like splashing around in an extra large bath tub and jumping on a King size bed, listened to an I-pod, watched cartoons on a lap top computer, flushed a modern toilet, washed his hands in a modern sink, slept on a King size bed, risen in a glass elevator, rode down an escalator, shopped in an underground mall, eaten pizza in a restaurant, and countless other things, all for the first time.

I hope I have not given you the impression that the orphanage in Mariupol is an inadequate place. After taking a tour, I was blown away by how incredible it is. The orphanage director and her staff have done an extraordinary job making the living conditions very comfortable and the schooling environment outstanding. The children are divided into small groups by their ages and intellectual abilities. Each group has about ten to fifteen children and has its own living area. In each living area, there is a large living room, dorm room with beds and lockers, and a large bathroom. The children have access to a large assembly room, a Ukrainian cultural room, a plush music and poetry room, a cooking classroom where children learn how to cook basic foods, a physical education room, an art room, and an ecology room. Besides the children’s rooms, there is a commercial kitchen, a laundry facility, a medical exam room, a sewing room, administration offices, and a staff lounge. Included among the thirty or so staff members are a doctor, a director, an assistant director, nurses, a social pedagogue, a seamstress, administrators, caretakers, cooks, laundry workers, and security guards. You can now see why I am so impressed.

We completed the medical examination on Monday and picked up his Visa at the US embassy today. So, the final stages of the adoption process are done. In other words, we are almost home. This has been an incredible experience, but I am ready to return to California. See you soon.