...To Love Them

A quick post about dinner last night at the Queen of Sheba Restaurant.  We had such a great time (so fun that I forgot to take any pictures!)  Adoptive families gathered to welcome home sweet Eli.  He is such a beautiful baby.  There were tons of families that came, many that I only know of through blogs, so it was great to actually meet moms, dads and kids.  The restaurant was so busy that extra help was called in to serve tables.  A young man (H.)  and his wife helped as waiters.  H. easily engaged us in conversation and asked about our family.  We learned that he was adopted from Ethiopia when he was 14.  When we told him we were adopting, we asked if there was one thing he could share with us as an adoptee that would help our kids.  He praised his mom for driving hours to the nearest Ethiopian restaurant, in addition to other things, to help him and his brothers stay connected with their heritage while they were growing up.  He said keeping their culture alive was very important.  The second thing he said was, "To love them."  He assured us that the adoption process and transition is not easy, parents make mistakes, but adoption is good and God is faithful.  H. said that when he tells people he is from Africa, the first things that usually come to a person's mind is desert and starving kids.  He said while there are deserts and there are starving children, there is still so much more to his beautiful country.  He gave Dustin and me good things to think about and discuss as we prepare for the future. (I would love to share more of H.'s story, but I didn't ask his permission and don't want to assume that it is o.k.  He and his wife were absolutely delightful and shined the love of God with genuineness and beautiful transparency.)

Delicious food, wonderful company and lots of new friends.  Thank you God!