Orphanage Visit

Laura with her nanny in September 2015,
one month before we met her.

Today we visited Laura's orphanage. I did not go last time because she was still grieving the loss of her nanny and I didn't think it would be great for her to say another goodbye. (For the same reasons, we won't be visiting Howie's orphanage this time.)

Zhengzhou CWI

Gates of ZZ CWI

Laura was found at the gates of the Zhengzhou orphanage when she was one day old and stayed at the same orphanage

until we adopted her at 16 months. The orphanage is huge. It houses about 800 children. I asked how often they get new babies today and they said almost everyday.

We visited her room today and gave her nanny a photo card with pictures of Laura. The nanny remembered her well. She was pleased to have the card and showed it to the other nannies, saying "Hui Jing, Hui Jing" (Laura's Chinese name.) She showed us Laura's crib, which now is the home to a new baby, of course, and we visited with the nannies and children in Laura's room where she spent the first year and a half of her life.

Crib where Laura slept for the first 16 months of her life.
Now occupied by a new waiting baby. 

It was an emotional morning as we saw with our eyes where our daughter started her life, and knew that Howie's start was very similar, but his stay was longer. I am thankful both Laura and Howie had nannies who cared for them, loved them even. I am thankful for their strong spirits and determined natures that helped them in those early years.

As we walked the halls of the orphanage, behind each new door was a room filled with children without parents. Rows and rows of beds. And our hearts broke again for the children who wait.

This little girl has spunk! She captured my heart for sure!
She is living in Laura's old room. She obviously has
limb differences, but she won't let that slow her down!

At the end of the day we met a young man named Chau (but he wanted to be called Phillip.) He approached us in a wheelchair and asked us "How are you?" in English and our heads turned. We then had a conversation with him and found out he had learned English in two years. He said "English is very easy." and we all laughed...Chinese is very difficult! He grew up in the orphanage and now teaches computer classes there to the older orphans. At the end of the conversation he looked at us and asked, "Are you a family?" and it was all I could do not to weep there in front of him.

Lots of little babies waiting...

Every child should know the love of family. Every child should know what it means to have a mother and father who loves him. No one should be left behind.