John's Blog
Sunday, August 08, 2004
Adam's Turn
I don't really know where to start today. Overall, I think the day was pretty good. But, it was also a mixed bag. There were some encouraging signs as well as some discouraging things.
This morning, Adam didn't want to ask for his orange, so we didn't give it to him. Eventually (15 minutes later or so), he asked for it, and we gave it to him along with some kisses and hugs. I'm not sure what was up, but that's what happened.
Liana was one that had us most concerned before, but today, things have sort of flipped. Aleksa has been pretty much the same -- trying to do what she wants and getting upset if we don't let her, and Liana helped to keep her in line. Shelly blogged a little about that. But, tonight, Adam ran out the orphanage gate and wouldn't stop as I shouted to him. So, I ran out to him, and scolded him as I carried him back. This morning, I had taken an old battery from him, not really understanding what was going on. This afternoon, he apparently wanted it back, but I had left it in our room. Maybe that's what spawned this. On the other hand, we pulled out the little "quick point" card that people can use for communication while travelling, and he and I sat and looked at it together for several minutes. We also played with some new toys that we had brought. Things seemed good for a while, then he started wandering or running away. After the second incident, I picked him up and sat him on my lap and didn't let him get away (but he didn't try as hard as he could have). Then we had a repeat of my previous argument with Liana. "I'm your Papa, I love you." "No" "Yes I am" "No", etc. Maybe I'm not reading him just right, but the manner in which he did this makes me *suspect* that he was purposefully re-enacting what he saw between Liana and I. After that, Liana has pretty much clung to me and asked me to hold her whenever possible. I'm hoping that something similar takes place with Adam. (I'll make sure to bring his battery back tomorrow. We had to change batteries in the camera, and he saw that. Maybe that was part of the problem.) It is also interesting to note that Liana was especially good and cheerful while Adam was going through his little bit.
When we had to leave, we got in the taxi, and waved and blew kisses. Aleksa and Liana were both grinning, but I'm not sure what Adama was doing because his head wasn't turned toward us. It seemed that the evening ended well enough between us, but I will be much happier if he is excited to see us when we come tomorrow.
Again, I think that some of our adventures are becoming less adoption-only adventures and more like traditional parent-child adventures. If the last few days are enough time to establish a precedent, this little incident with Adam will end up being a good thing. We keep praying that this will be the case. Thank you for your prayers!
I also can't help but thinking of this verse every couple of days, particularly when I'm in either a very positive or a somewhat distraught mood: Psalm 127:3a and 5a, "Behold, children are a gift of the Lord ... How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them;" While it seems that this is normally considered a comment on the value of children, it also gives me a little encouragement like a promise. Since children are a treasure, and we do plan to raise them to glorify God, we can fully expect that whatever problems arise will be handled and that the children will turn out to be wonderful in God's sight and our own.
Adam and Papa
This morning, Adam didn't want to ask for his orange, so we didn't give it to him. Eventually (15 minutes later or so), he asked for it, and we gave it to him along with some kisses and hugs. I'm not sure what was up, but that's what happened.
Liana was one that had us most concerned before, but today, things have sort of flipped. Aleksa has been pretty much the same -- trying to do what she wants and getting upset if we don't let her, and Liana helped to keep her in line. Shelly blogged a little about that. But, tonight, Adam ran out the orphanage gate and wouldn't stop as I shouted to him. So, I ran out to him, and scolded him as I carried him back. This morning, I had taken an old battery from him, not really understanding what was going on. This afternoon, he apparently wanted it back, but I had left it in our room. Maybe that's what spawned this. On the other hand, we pulled out the little "quick point" card that people can use for communication while travelling, and he and I sat and looked at it together for several minutes. We also played with some new toys that we had brought. Things seemed good for a while, then he started wandering or running away. After the second incident, I picked him up and sat him on my lap and didn't let him get away (but he didn't try as hard as he could have). Then we had a repeat of my previous argument with Liana. "I'm your Papa, I love you." "No" "Yes I am" "No", etc. Maybe I'm not reading him just right, but the manner in which he did this makes me *suspect* that he was purposefully re-enacting what he saw between Liana and I. After that, Liana has pretty much clung to me and asked me to hold her whenever possible. I'm hoping that something similar takes place with Adam. (I'll make sure to bring his battery back tomorrow. We had to change batteries in the camera, and he saw that. Maybe that was part of the problem.) It is also interesting to note that Liana was especially good and cheerful while Adam was going through his little bit.
When we had to leave, we got in the taxi, and waved and blew kisses. Aleksa and Liana were both grinning, but I'm not sure what Adama was doing because his head wasn't turned toward us. It seemed that the evening ended well enough between us, but I will be much happier if he is excited to see us when we come tomorrow.
Again, I think that some of our adventures are becoming less adoption-only adventures and more like traditional parent-child adventures. If the last few days are enough time to establish a precedent, this little incident with Adam will end up being a good thing. We keep praying that this will be the case. Thank you for your prayers!
I also can't help but thinking of this verse every couple of days, particularly when I'm in either a very positive or a somewhat distraught mood: Psalm 127:3a and 5a, "Behold, children are a gift of the Lord ... How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them;" While it seems that this is normally considered a comment on the value of children, it also gives me a little encouragement like a promise. Since children are a treasure, and we do plan to raise them to glorify God, we can fully expect that whatever problems arise will be handled and that the children will turn out to be wonderful in God's sight and our own.
Adam and Papa
