Open Arms

It is 3:30 here and we've just returned to the hotel with Ricky. Both of us are running on empty and will take a brief nap to recuperate; however, here is a summary of the day:

Well, Che picked us up around 9:45 Am and we took the hotel taxi to the Parenting Foundation. Traffic in Manila is much like that in Mexico City....every driver for his or herself. Lanes, lights and Stop signs are all just suggestions; however, I did not see one wreck. Probably not quite as hectic as Mexico City but close. Taxis everywhere, in the form of sidecars on motorcycles, Jeepneys (oversized Jeep-like vehicles) and every other form under the sun. Our driver was great and stayed with us all day.

Got to the Foundation at 10:30 and what a joyful reunion. Praise God! Our little man was all smiles, a little shy at first but I think mainly because there were several other adults and children there. The social workers there informed us that Ricky woke up at 3:30 AM because he was excited and couldn't sleep. We met his foster mother, Lilian, who has 5 other foster kids, and Ricky's good friend Richard. We got to see some of his schoolwork and pictures that he drew for us, but mainly just sat and visited. Leaving was sad as Richard took it pretty hard; pray that his adoptive parents are cleared to come get him soon.

We left the foundation and took a ride to Ricky's school. Classes were out today but there were a number of kids there taking some type of standardized test. Apparently a 6' 3" white man is a novelty at the school as I seemed to draw quite a bit of attention. Friendly but shy smiles from beautiful children. The school grounds were modest, as expected, with several "urban gardening" plots. We went to Ricky's class and took some pictures, as well as got to see his work. We also met the principle who thanked us for taking Ricky in. No thanks needed of course.

We then proceeded to a local mall for lunch, where we dined on Filipino food. My first time, but not a bad experience. Some similarities to Chinese on some dishes, but there were definitely some different items. Allien from the Foundation joined us and she informed me that Ricky had written Lillian a letter apologizing for when he had misbehaved while living with her. Apparently a pretty sweet letter that brought her to tears. I know how quickly we became attached to Ricky in 3 weeks, so I'm sure the last 7 months will make it difficult for her to see him leave. We thank God for such a loving family to take Ricky in while we waited to get him.

Finally, we stopped off at the memorial for the WWII service men that were killed in the Pacific campaign. A beautiful memorial to those that gave their lives for our country and for the people of the Philippines.

We'll take a short nap and then make plans for the evening. Keep sending the comments as we like to hear from everyone back home