Sometimes it's so busy here, we have to slow down to think. Even our facilitators do not give us every detail of every day until that morning, unless there's a meeting of some sort, so as not to overload us. Today, we had a fun day of shopping, followed by a group picture with all the Lifeline families, followed by dinner at a Malaysian restaurant. Tomorrow, we will visit the hospital again to get the results of Lucy Hope's TB test, then we will go to the zoo to see pandas, and later we will eat dinner aboard a small vessel cruising the Pearl river. In between, Austin and I have another meeting with the Lifeline facilitators to collect and share video/photographs taken this week at Maoming. Did I say busy?
First, the shopping. When we first came to China in 2006 to adopt Lily Grace, the facilitators at Lifeline took us to a local market to buy goods at wholesale prices. Very inexpensive pearls, jade, etc.. So, it's kind of been a tradition to go back there with each successive adoption. This time, however, Connie and Lucy Hope were both a little under the weather and the weather wasn't all that good to begin with. So, they decided to sit this one out. Now, this can only mean one of two things; 1) Connie has taken too much cough medicine and doesn't realize she's sending me out to buy little girl things, including dresses and potentially shoes; or 2) I have now been graded an A+ shopper for Lily, Lia, and now Lucy (Austin can perfectly well take care of himself). Probably a little of both. Anyway, I did come away with a dress for Lucy Hope and some pink pearls (I know, I know, all the mommas are going "what were you thinking?"). Lily Grace spotted the pink pearls and simply had to have them. At least they were very inexpensive. Austin picked up a few DVDs and I found some Chinese music and some Christian music by my favorite Chinese vocalist! We found some embroidery for Connie to top off the shopping. Not bad for a couple of rookies. OK, stop laughing now.
We sneaked away from our group for a short side trip into the heart of China's shopping mecca known as Guangzhou. We saw many things and many different ways of conducting business. Even the rain could not dampen the spirit of those who would sell their goods at the gate to the city of Guangzhou. Last time we were here, I saw a dentist practicing on the sidewalk and a line had formed for his services! Too much rain this time. But every other imaginable kind of products was being bought and sold. We found our way to a McDonalds restaurant on the second floor of a building a block or so away and ordered our lunch. When we sat down, Lily says "Let's pray." And just like that, she launched into a dialogue with our Father, thanking Him, praising Him, asking for healing for Lucy Hope and safety for our travels. Now, you have to know we were packed into an area just big enough for 40 or 50 people, except that there were probably 100 or so. Everything here seems that way. In the silent wake of Lily's prayer, we raised our heads to find many eyes fixed upon us. So, we just smiled and ate our lunch. Two young girls seated next to us were enamored by our presence and could speak enough English to strike up a conversation. I don't know if they thought we were funny or they just enjoyed meeting us so much, but they kept laughing at everything! Even Lily Grace and Lia Faith thought they were a little silly. But they were nice and wished us well.
Later in the day, we took a group photo with the other adoptive families from Lifeline. Austin was recruited as the photographer and did a fine job. Because of his work, every family (18 total) will take home a group photo to add to their memory books. We are so proud of Austin and the effort he has put forth on behalf of orphans during this trip. He has photographed each of the adoptive families during gotcha day, taken pictures of waiting children at the orphanage in Maoming, and helped Lifeline document the successes of the past two weeks. We give thanks to God for such a wonderful son.
Before we left for dinner, Connie, Lily Grace, and Lia Faith spotted a wedding finishing up and Lily and Lia crashed the photo session! The bride and groom were very gracious and so Lia and Lily popped into a couple of pictures with them! Then it was on to dinner. We were told the food was Thai, but the restaurant was Malaysian. The food was OK - Lucy Hope really liked it. Lily Grace and Lia Faith ate every noodle in the place, while Lucy Hope emptied out the rice bowls, especially the coconut flavored ones!Did I say busy?
Love,
Jerry, Connie, Austin, Lily Grace, Lia Faith, and Lucy Hope
Green, Party of Six
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