Welcome The Childrens Parent's Here

We got to visit Zoe LuYao's SWI (Social Welfare Institute) yesterday. Except for "gotcha day", it's been the most powerful part of the trip so far. I can only describe it in a series of moments --

-- the beautiful countryside on the way out; the town itself with the now familiar mix of old, new, rich, and poor; how happy the staff were to meet us and to have a few more hours with our babies; the emotional roller-coaster of being in the room where Zoe lived since she was a few days old - the rows of cribs each with a living bundle waiting for a home and the empty one that was Lu Yao's; how happy she was to be back in the familiar arms of her ayi; the little boy with the cleft-palate who took my hand and led me around the room; the trepidation with which we westerners accepted the staff's generous offer of lunch at a local restaurant (we'd seen the town on the way in) and our delight at enjoying what has been so far the very best meal of the trip; the comic timing of our first back-seat diaper change; and the wonder of visiting Lu Yao's finding site.

Whatever our feelings about the manner in which these babies are cared for in their first months, we left knowing that they are truly loved by the SWI staff and we are comforted by the fact that Zoe was able to form a genuine attachment to her caregiver.



P.S. Spotty Internet service has prevented me from posting more pictures and videos in the past day or two. I'll have more on-line as soon as I can.