We have had a great time the past 3 days. Benjamin is doing great, Bryce and Elise are being the best big brother and sister anyone could ask for, and we haven’t gotten sick yet! We are so thankful for how the LORD has blessed this trip and our time together. However, there are things that keep reminding us of the conditions Benjamin was raised in his first 3 years. When we were in the orphanage, and in particular, in his room (shared with 7-8 other kids) we saw a child (<1 year) lying in the crib on his back just staring at the ceiling. He probably stayed like that for hours upon hours because he was not crying or requiring any attention…so he lays and he lays on his back. One of the things we have noticed about Benjamin is the back of his head is really flat…probably because he was lying just like the boy we saw for hours and hours. No attention, no one reading to him, no “tummy time’, nothing…just lying there staring at the ceiling. Another indicator of his past is that he goes to bed with a bottle of water mixed with milk and wheat powder. He just lays on his back with the bottle straight up and drinks it until he falls asleep. He has probably done that his whole life, propped if unable to hold…. These are sobering examples of the fact that his first 3 years were not ideal and will impact him for the rest of his life. We do rejoice that he gets to be a part of our family now, and hopefully those scars will gradually get smaller and smaller, so please continue to pray for him…
On another note, we traveled to Yangming mountain today, and hiked up (1.7 km) to the top. Benjamin wanted to be carried the entire way so I put him on my shoulders and off we went. We got to the top and it was overcast and foggy so we just took a break, had a snack, and came back down. Afterwards we went to a memorial in Taipei that had another changing of the guard. The kids liked it and while we were there, several of the people wanted to take pictures with us. I warned everyone before we got here that that might happen and on a few occasions people have wanted to take pictures with Elise. I asked her if that makes her “feel special” or makes her “feel weird” and she says, without a doubt, makes her feel weird!! She has handled it well, smiles and comes back to us.
We got everyone to bed early because we have an early morning appointment at AIT (American Institute in Taiwan). The US does not have an official Embassy in Taiwan because of relations with China and the different political ramifications of acknowledging that Taiwan is independent. We are not sure what we will do, but it will take care of the immigration paperwork so Benjamin can come back to the US with us. So, another great day and 2 more to go…
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