a lil bit of news

First off, no worries to those of you who read yesterday’s post. Mary Grace woke up fine and dandy. Crisis averted. Again. That little thing sure does keep us on our toes…

Anyway, I wanted to give a little Rwanda update tonight. There’s not too terribly much to share, but we did receive some news- both good and bad- on our monthly conference call this week. Let’s start with the bad. According to our agency’s contact in Rwanda, the ministry seems to be settled on the fact that they will continue to only process adoptions through Home of Hope in Kigali.

They have their reasons, and we will have to respect them, but it does make my heart break. It breaks for the thousands and thousands of other orphans throughout the country who won’t have the hope of being adopted into a loving family. It breaks because while so many families wait anxiously to bring our Rwandan children home, children sit in orphanages. Hungry. Lonely. A product of institutions.

The good news? The Rwandan government is apparently launching a new “National Commission for Children” that will be supervised by the Ministry of Gender and Family Promotion. From what I understand, the intention is for this Commission to eventually oversee international adoptions. Why does this matter? Well, it could matter a great deal.

You see, one of the biggest fears of most of us adopting from Rwanda right now is the great unknown of what will happen if we don’t receive a referral in the next six months. If the ministry “closes” our dossier, is that the end? Will they no longer consider us for adoption? Thankfully, it seems as though that is not the intention of the ministry. If our file is indeed closed, it does not seem as though the ministry plans to just toss it in the trash and kick our dreams of bringing home a Rwandan baby to the curb. Rather, it sounds like the ministry may instead forward our dossier to this new commission to be dealt with. Which, in the perfect world, would be a smooth transition that would bring about a speedy, non-problematic referral. 🙂

I would be remiss if I don’t say one thing in a post like this. As rocky as our adoption has been thus far, I have much respect for the ministry in Rwanda. I really do think they have good motives and are doing the best they can. From everything that I hear and read, I truly believe that they have the best interest of these children in mind. Do they have all of the resources that we have here in the States? Nope. Might their values, worldview, and ethical standards vary a bit from ours due a hugely significant event in their nation’s history (read: the genocide of ’94)? Of course. I get this, and I appreciate them. Even if all heck breaks loose and we walk away from this experience without Wyatt in our arms, I don’t think I’ll have any hard feelings against the Rwandan government. From my limited perspective, I think they’re doing a pretty great job.

Nothing like some nitty gritty adoption jargon for a Saturday night, right? Keep praying, y’all…