Our "Red
Thread" Valentine Connection
There is an ancient Chinese belief that:
"An invisible Red Thread connects those who
are destined to meet, regardless of time, place of circumstance. The
thread my stretch or tangle, but never break."
This is the story of our "Red Thread" and
how it relates to Valentine's Day - the holiday which celebrates love and
hearts. Our "Journey of the Heart" is very closely tied to this
special day in many ways.
One of Mommy's favorite radio shows is "The
Delilah Show". So in 2002, just before Valentine's Day, Delilah
asked for special "Valentine Stories" to share on the air. Mommy
couldn't resist and sent this email to Delilah:
Dear Delilah,
My Valentine's Day
Story is a bit unconventional. And, as another adoptive Mom, I'm sure you will
be able to relate.
On Valentine's
Day 1999, my husband, Michael and
I decided to begin what would turn out to be our "Journey of the
Heart" into the wonderful world of adoption. We found ourselves
drawn to China. I somehow knew that my daughter – who probably had not even
been born yet - was waiting for me there.
We found a wonderful,
Christian agency and began the endless legwork and paperwork required for our
home study and INS approval. After many delays (for a variety of reasons) we
finally had our dossier ready to go to China and on Valentine’s
Day, 2000 our dossier was
officially received and logged by the China Council for Adoption Affairs. The
work was now over and the wait had begun. We hoped to get our phone call to
parenthood in 6 to 7 months.
Well . . . August
came and went. September came and went. Followed by October and November – and
the phone still hadn't rung. By December 19th, we had just about given up on the
one gift I wanted for Christmas 2000 – to be a Mom for the very first time. I
mailed our Christmas letters without the Adoption Announcement that had been
waiting since August, and said a little prayer asking for just a bit more
patience. He must have heard me because my telephone rang the next day to tell
me that a wonderful little girl named You Pan was waiting for us in China.
But that’s not the
end of our Valentine story.
On Valentine’s
Day, 2001 we
departed on the final leg of our "Journey of the Heart" to travel to
China and bring our little You Pan - soon to be called "Taylor" - home
to her "Forever Family".
And Valentine’s
Day, 2002 will mean so much more
to us as we celebrate this "Day of the Heart" for the first time with
our precious child who was born "not under my heart, but in it".
***********
Delilah, thank you for your wonderful show and for the forum you provide for birth parents,
adoptive parents, and the children they bring together. If you could play
something for us on Valentine’s Day, we’d love to dedicate our special song
to the amazing "Child of our Hearts": Taylor Lynn Pan Davis. And I’ll
bet you can guess what it is: "Valentine" by one of our favorite
artists – Jim Brickman.
Thank you so much!
Michael and Karen
Davis
P.S. You can visit us at Taylor’s Web site: www.taylor-davis.com
Well, lo and behold, Delilah's Program Manager called Mommy
and said that Delilah LOVED our story and wanted to interview her on the
air! She made some notes so she wouldn't babble when Delilah called.
Daddy kept me occupied while Mommy talked to her on February 12th, 2002.
Here is what she said:
Conversation with
Delilah 2/12/2002
This will be a very
special Valentine’s Day for my husband, Michael, and me. On this
"Day of the Heart", we can finally celebrate with the "Child of
Our Hearts".
Our story, and this
amazing "Heart Connection", began three years ago. On February
14th, 1999, (just 4
months after losing my Mom to cancer). I told Michael that I thought I was
ready to move past the grief and devote my time and energies to the adoption we
had been considering for some time. We were in our 40’s’s, and since there
were so many children in the world who needed a "Forever Family", we
felt that God was calling us to adopt. And we both agreed that He was leading us
to China. I just somehow knew that my daughter – who probably had not even
been born yet - was waiting for me there.
We found 2 wonderful,
Christian agencies and began the endless legwork and paperwork required for our
home study and INS approval. After many delays (for a variety of reasons) we
finally had our dossier ready to go to China and on Valentine’s
Day, 2000 it was officially
received by the China Council for Adoption Affairs. The work was now over and
the wait had begun. At that time, the wait was 6 to 7 months. The way it works,
the CCAA in China matches each available child to a waiting family. They send
this information to the Adoption Agency, who, in turn calls each family.
So, in August, I
began lunging for the phone every time it rang. August came and went. As did
September . . . and October . . . and November – and no call. By December
19th, we had just about given up on the one gift we both wanted for Christmas
2000 – to be parents for the very first time. So, I mailed our Christmas
letters – without our Adoption Announcement - and said a little
prayer asking for just a bit more patience. Well, God must have heard me because
the very next day my telephone rang to tell us that a little girl named You Pan
was waiting for us in China.
But there’s more to
our Valentine story and this "heart thing" as we’ve come to call it.
Our agency made the
arrangements for our group to travel to China and complete the paperwork for our
daughter. And . . . you guessed it . . . on Valentine’s
Day 2001 -
we boarded the plane for the final leg of our exciting "Journey of the
Heart" to take us to our little China Doll.
And, on THIS
Valentine’s Day - 2002 - as I
reflect on the past 3 years, I just can’t imagine our lives without her.
Taylor is a precocious, bubbly little 22-month-old imp. Her smile brightens a
room and her giggle is contagious. She is strong-willed and intelligent. Over
this past year, I have seen her blossom and learn each day. I think I finally
understand why it took over two years for us to "Join Our Hearts" with
this amazing child. If we had done anything different during those 2 years, this
wonderful little girl would have been matched to another family - and she was
waiting for US! In so many ways, she is my daughter, even though she was born
"not under my heart, but in it".
If you could play
something for us on Valentine’s Day, we’d love to dedicate our special song
to the amazing "Child of Our Hearts". We love Jim Brickman, so either
"Valentine" or "You are the Love of My Life", would be
terrific!
But, that's not all. After Mommy relayed her story, Delilah said,
"you know, Valentine's Day is just a couple of days away. Have you
thought about going back for a baby sister for Taylor?"
Mommy couldn't believe it! She and Daddy had actually been discussing
this! Delilah's ESP must have been tuned in that night! So Mommy
told Daddy what Delilah said.
He pondered it for a couple of days, then
surprised Mommy with a beautiful bouquet of flowers on - you guessed it - Valentine's
Day 2002 with a card that read "Can we name her
Kelly?" So, it was official. We are going to have a
"Baby Sister" (although Mommy was adamant
that her name WON'T be "Kelly"!) - and the "Red Thread
Valentine Connection" continued yet another year!
Join our
family and explore the many aspects of our "Adoption
Journey"!
Thank
you for visiting my Web site. And,
if you can, please send me an email
to help me get to know you better. I promise I'll answer (or at least
Mommy will until I can type a little better!)
This page was last updated on 05/30/06.
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