***
This story is long because this journey was long. Four years long. I share it here for Dominic, but also for all those who may still be on the long road to adopting. May it bring encouragement to all those who are patiently waiting for an answer to their prayers.
Part 3 of 6
For Dominic.
On August 11, 2016, we packed our bags and started driving. From our home to Houston, it would be 1,000 miles. We had never made such a long car trip with your brothers,
and we had never been to Houston. We had no family or friends in Houston, and
were placing all faith in God that he would help us along the way. We were
leaving a week before your due date, because we had been given the impression
by your birthmother that you would be born ahead of schedule. Anxiety and fear
kept trying to creep into my heart, and I would frequently remind myself that
God was in control.
And as we trusted, God led the way. As we made our journey,
we were blessed with the kindness of your father’s aunt and uncle. They
graciously took us in and allowed us to stay at their home for as long as we
needed. They lived at the half-way point of our long journey, and became a much
needed respite. And even though our visit had been unplanned, God worked out
all the details so that our stay with them was not only possible, but also a
blessing to us all.
The other great blessing came in the form of the B family.
Friends of a friend, they’d heard about our plight and offered us a place to
stay while we waited for you to be born. Located just outside of Houston, they
opened their home to us and gave us refuge while we waited for your birth.
Feeling a little uncomfortable about accepting their offer, we promised to stay
for only a day or two, assuming you’d be born on or ahead of schedule. Little
did we know when we accepted their invitation that we’d actually be staying
with them for 10 days! Yet, in spite of this, they were so understanding and
accommodating of our predicament. In a sense, their family adopted our family
while we waited to adopt you, and we owe them a great debt of gratitude. They
became our home-away-from-home and were the family we really needed during one
of the most challenging times of our life. They really showed us what true
Christian love looks like as they "welcomed the stranger" (Heb. 13:2).
All this time, from June when we first learned of you until
we arrived in Texas, I had been corresponding with your birthmother. She was
always so sweet and gracious and would send me photos of you in her belly. When
we learned of your gender, she was hopeful that we would be happy and of
course, we were! When your father and I
chose your name, I was hopeful that she would like it and she did! She even
replied that “Mateo” was a name she had been considering for you, and I
considered that a little sign from God that we were on the right path.
As your due date approached, my correspondence with your
birthmother became more frequent. She was having health issues related to the
pregnancy and was struggling just to walk. After your due date came and went,
she began to have more discomfort and was having too much swelling in her legs
and feet. Through the agency, your father and I gave her the means to visit a
local health clinic, but they did little to help her and kept sending her back home. A
week passed past your due date and still, you did not come. She became more
distressed and our prayers for her and for you were becoming constant. She visited the hospital ER, but they, too, sent her home, telling her to return in 3 days. We feared
that would be too long for her to wait. We asked all the saints and our prayer
warriors to intercede for us. As the time crept ever so slowly, I had a very heavy feeling in my heart that
something was not right, and I feared for you and for her.
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