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Come in and have a cup of coffee with us. Yes, it’s pure Guatemalan Coffee and it is good. Kristina never liked coffee before this 14 month stay in Guatemala and now she drinks it black with a hint of sugar. If you want, we can fix some eggs and frijoles (beans) for you while we wait here this Monday morning…
It was Monday, March 28th, 2005 and we woke up with the greatest anticipation within our souls. We barely verbalized it to one another for fear of becoming overly excited. The US Embassy and other offices would open this morning. Yet we knew that we had a long road ahead of us if we wanted to go home together on Friday. So we sat in the kitchen and waited.
…So have you ever been to San Cristobal before? Not many people from the states have unless there was a specific reason for it. You know this isn’t even San Cristobal? This is actually known as San Cristobal 2! We are in the area known as Mixco on the northwest side of Guatemala City. We are only about 25 minutes from Antigua. We won’t go there today however. Over there in the corner is the phone we are waiting for. It will ring soon and our lawyer will be telling us all of our stuff is in the embassy…
I’m not sure how much of our time over that 14 month period was spent staring at a phone. It is amazing how the body can become fatigued from simple anticipation. As we sat there, and waited, I felt myself growing weary.
…We are very grateful to be staying in this house while we are here in Guatemala. The young couple we just ate breakfast with are both from Guatemala and they are now missionaries in their home country. They have been so kind as to open their house to us for more than a year. The house is so small that Mia finds herself in their room to play quite often and they enjoy it. They are about to have their first child any day now. The pregnancy was filled with various problems but everything has been OK to date…
Rita and Odwar were the most amazing couple and the greatest of friends. Mia knew them as she would an aunt and an uncle. Without a doubt, it was their care and concern that helped Kristina through many frustrating days. Though the extra people in the house made it feel even smaller, I know they were happy to have Kristina and Mia there. To this day, the memory of Rita and Odwar remain with Mia.
…Yes I know it is getting later in the day and we haven’t heard anything. Do you think I should call? Oh Rita says she will do it for us…
Probably one of the most frustrating things was having to have an interpreter half of the time when I spoke with our lawyer. After a year, Rita knew the case well enough that she asked the questions without having to ask us what we wanted to know. This conversation did not go so well. It was after 2pm and the papers were not in the Embassy. He was there however and was supposedly turning them in.
…That was our “Angel in the Embassy” on the phone. She is back home in the states but has been on the phone to the Embassy on our behalf. Apparently our lawyer had been summoned to the Embassy to give testimony about some individuals he had an association with that the Embassy deemed to be unscrupulous. The were questioning the level of his involvement. However, she did say that he returned with her papers except for the passport. We’re going to have to go tomorrow and get that as well…
Do you feel like the day was wasted? It was in a way. Our “Angel in the Embassy” said that our lawyer was facing some very serious consequences if he did not cooperate. This gave us an overwhelming sense of calm (sarcasm intended). However, we felt that we were on the way to what we needed.
…So will you ride with us tomorrow? We have to go to the hospital with Rita and Odwar in the morning and then we will head over to the passport office for Mia. It may be a long day but hopefully filled with positive steps for Mia! OK see you tomorrow…
The Mummau Series
1. Choosing To Adopt
2. Why International? Why Guatemala?
3. The Call From Guatemala
4. The Process Begins
5. A Prelude To Mia
6. How Can You “Choose” A Child – Leaving Others Behind?
7. Peer Into The Heart – Journal Entries
8. Meeting Maria – Finding Mia
9. Leaving Our Daughter…is that…no way!
10. Rivers of Waiting
11. Mistakes, Intentions, and Naivety – How Hope Began To Die
12. Alone in Guatemala and Waiting
13. Time Marches On – Goodbye Mia for Now
14. Joyful Gringos in Quetzaltenango
15. Mia Mia
16. Abuela Comes To The Rescue
17. Doctors, Couriers, and Delays
18. Even So, You Won’t Believe This
19. The Summer of Frustration Ends
20. Fall Approaches with Broken Hearts…Teeth
21. 1600 Miles from Tecpan (pt.1)
22. 1600 Miles from Tecpan (pt.2)
23. Kristina Comes Home
24. Mia’s First Steps
25. December’s Momentum
26. An Angel In The Embassy? I
27. An Angel in the Embassy? II
28. A Christmas to Remember…and Forget
29. Daddy’s 2nd Visit
30. Clash at The Embassy
31. We’re In The PGN! OK Let Us Out!
32. Accomodations
33. The Pencil – Never Give Up
34. Exiting the PGN…sort of
35. Exiting the PGN…yet again
36. Daddy Has Enough
37. The Countdown Begins
38. Easter Brings Hope
39. Sit With Me in San Cristobal
40. T-Minus a few things and counting
41. My New Favorite Color
42. Hope Becomes Reality-The Embassy Interview
43. Mia Mummau Goes Home
More blogs about Guatemala Adoption.
I was spellbound as I’ve read posts 1 to 24 this evening and am only pausing because I need to get to bed to get up for work, but I’ll be back to find out the rest. Thank you again for sharing all of this.
Thanks so much. Get some rest. I’m working on #42 right now and it is soon going to be done. I guess the next thing would be to put it in the form of a book. I wonder if anyone would read it!