This Fathers' Day I have thought a lot about what next Father's Day might look like and what it will be like to be on the other-side of Fathers' Day. This morning, as I sang in the men's chorus at church with my own father, I thought about how different our family will probably look in a year and how wonderfully exciting and promising that is. I could never have imagined that fatherhood would be such an enchanting prospect.
Friday morning, as Rebecca and I hurriedly got ready for the day, we received a phone call from the immigration office to verify the contact information for our adoption agency. Two weeks ago, during our fingerprinting appointment, the fingerprinting technician (a title I have concocted for my own purposes) told Rebecca that she would probably have to be re-fingerprinted, as they were unable to obtain a clear enough digital image. When we received the phone call from immigration, we were informed that both of our fingerprints had passed and that we were (as of June 19, 2009) officially approved by the United States Government to bring to the U.S. a child of foreign birth.
We have now completed the largest body of paperwork for the adoption of our child that we will have to complete. It is remarkable to imagine that, as our documents are being translated for use by the Ethiopian Government, that our child may have already been born. During the next several months, as we wait for our referral, we will both try to imagine what our child will look like, what gender it will be, what his or her personality will be like. I suppose that the next several months will be much like the time frame in a traditional pregnancy when you await seeing the baby move in an ultrasound and await hearing the beating of his or her heart for the first time. The next few months will undoubtedly be filled with much wonder and more than a little excitement and anticipation. It is reassuring to know that sometime, in the not so distant future, we will receive a picture of our child - possibly the most incredible 3-D ultrasound we could receive.
Ryan
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Electricity Situation in Ethiopia
The following is a re-post of a report found on the AAI blog www.aainews.blogspot.com. If you are inclined to pray, now would be the time to pray for rain in Ethiopia.
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The following is a post from Gail Gorfe, the AAI staff member who manages Layla House and raises her own wonderful family of 4 children in Ethiopia. The electricity situation is becoming increasingly dire.
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Power rationing and life in Ethiopia
Around the end of the February power rationing was started again in Ethiopia. Power rationing is done by the Ethiopian government to meet the energy demands of the country. Due to a shortage of power, the electricity is turned off to save energy. Most electricity is generated through dams and without enough water (and dams being built taking longer then scheduled) the problem continues to grow.
Back in February everyone was very annoyed with the rationing but as it continues annoyance is a very minor issue. We went from losing power for 8 hours twice a week, to 12 hours then to 16 hours every two days. As of this week it is now 24 hours every second day. This is no longer simply an annoyance, but a catastrophe for the economy and for many people. And it is not over. Rumors around town are suggesting it will be as high as 48 hours of no power and 12 hours with.
Losing power in your home is no fun, especially when you are used to the luxuries of life, like hot water in the house, a fridge and washing machine. Without power those of us with the luxuries are reminded of what the majority of Ethiopians live without every day. This does not make it any easier of course. Planning meals is harder, shopping for groceries because a daily job and even taking hot showers (especially with a large family) becomes a job of scheduling.
But the impact on the country is so much bigger. There are many small business that operate in Addis Ababa and throughout the cities where that small business provides the income for the owner and/or employees and supports a large household. Income is shared within families as unemployment is high. As power rationing continues, business close down and more people will lose their jobs, with little prospect of another one.
Small business like coffee shops, translation offices, secretarial services and so many more are dependent on power to operate and on days without power they cannot work, which is a big loss for a business that needs to bring in a specific amount of income to stay operational.
Larger business like restaurant suffer greatly too of course. A lot more time and effort is needed to prepare food and keep it fresh and many need to spend money on purchasing generators.
Government offices, banks and others also suffer great slowdowns with the power cuts. The work of one week is forced into a few days and people wait longer for things that otherwise take only a few hours.
Large factories, which provide needed items for the society, or sent products for export, and bring in the needed foreign currency, are struggling to stay operational and every day you read in the papers of another one shut down. Without sufficient power the large machines cannot operate and many hours of work are lost when the power is shut off. The government is even requiring some factories to purchase generators for their power needs or to be cut off completely.
Specific factories are currently still exempt from the rationing, such as Pharmaceutical factories, but if the power shortage continues even they will need to be included in the rationing, forcing them to become dependent on generator power in order to keep the power properly regulated.
From mid to late June until the of September is when Ethiopia has its large rains. It is the “Krempt” season. Over the past few years the rains have come as early as late May, but so far this year there have been only a few showers here and there. Rain is very much needed and once the rainy season it is fully underway the power issue will be alleviated.
Of course rain for power is not the only issue. Ethiopia has faced drought many many times in the past and if this years’ rainy season is late, there will be many other problems besides the issue of power rationing.
We can only hope and pray that the rains will come very quickly and life can return to normal.
***********
The following is a post from Gail Gorfe, the AAI staff member who manages Layla House and raises her own wonderful family of 4 children in Ethiopia. The electricity situation is becoming increasingly dire.
***********
Power rationing and life in Ethiopia
Around the end of the February power rationing was started again in Ethiopia. Power rationing is done by the Ethiopian government to meet the energy demands of the country. Due to a shortage of power, the electricity is turned off to save energy. Most electricity is generated through dams and without enough water (and dams being built taking longer then scheduled) the problem continues to grow.
Back in February everyone was very annoyed with the rationing but as it continues annoyance is a very minor issue. We went from losing power for 8 hours twice a week, to 12 hours then to 16 hours every two days. As of this week it is now 24 hours every second day. This is no longer simply an annoyance, but a catastrophe for the economy and for many people. And it is not over. Rumors around town are suggesting it will be as high as 48 hours of no power and 12 hours with.
Losing power in your home is no fun, especially when you are used to the luxuries of life, like hot water in the house, a fridge and washing machine. Without power those of us with the luxuries are reminded of what the majority of Ethiopians live without every day. This does not make it any easier of course. Planning meals is harder, shopping for groceries because a daily job and even taking hot showers (especially with a large family) becomes a job of scheduling.
But the impact on the country is so much bigger. There are many small business that operate in Addis Ababa and throughout the cities where that small business provides the income for the owner and/or employees and supports a large household. Income is shared within families as unemployment is high. As power rationing continues, business close down and more people will lose their jobs, with little prospect of another one.
Small business like coffee shops, translation offices, secretarial services and so many more are dependent on power to operate and on days without power they cannot work, which is a big loss for a business that needs to bring in a specific amount of income to stay operational.
Larger business like restaurant suffer greatly too of course. A lot more time and effort is needed to prepare food and keep it fresh and many need to spend money on purchasing generators.
Government offices, banks and others also suffer great slowdowns with the power cuts. The work of one week is forced into a few days and people wait longer for things that otherwise take only a few hours.
Large factories, which provide needed items for the society, or sent products for export, and bring in the needed foreign currency, are struggling to stay operational and every day you read in the papers of another one shut down. Without sufficient power the large machines cannot operate and many hours of work are lost when the power is shut off. The government is even requiring some factories to purchase generators for their power needs or to be cut off completely.
Specific factories are currently still exempt from the rationing, such as Pharmaceutical factories, but if the power shortage continues even they will need to be included in the rationing, forcing them to become dependent on generator power in order to keep the power properly regulated.
From mid to late June until the of September is when Ethiopia has its large rains. It is the “Krempt” season. Over the past few years the rains have come as early as late May, but so far this year there have been only a few showers here and there. Rain is very much needed and once the rainy season it is fully underway the power issue will be alleviated.
Of course rain for power is not the only issue. Ethiopia has faced drought many many times in the past and if this years’ rainy season is late, there will be many other problems besides the issue of power rationing.
We can only hope and pray that the rains will come very quickly and life can return to normal.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
We shall be thankful...
In Ethiopia, complications to the completion of adoptions and many, many other forms of commerce have been caused by a lack of electricity (due to a lack of rain). We shall be thankful, today, for steady electricity.
http://en.ethiopianreporter.com/content/view/1207/26/
http://en.ethiopianreporter.com/content/view/1207/26/
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Waiting...
It has been a while since I have posted in numerical order where we are in this process...so, to make me feel better and to give you an idea, here goes...
Next Steps:
1. Wait for referral of a child with information and a picture! - Likely 4-5 months from our DTE (dossier to Ethiopia) date of 5-18-2009.
2. Official advance authorization from the US Department of Homeland Security to bring our future child home. - Anytime
3. Wait for document submission to Ethiopian court. - A few weeks to a couple of months from referral acceptance.
4. Wait for our adoption to finalize in court. (Some people end up having multiple court dates. Finalization is NOT guaranteed on the first round). - Could go very fast, could take 6 months or more!
5. TRAVEL! - Approx. 3-6 weeks after our adoption is finalized.
It will go fast, I just am not sure if it will go fast like a lunch break or like high school.
Rebecca :)
learning patience every day
I really don't like paitence nor the act of learning it.
Next Steps:
1. Wait for referral of a child with information and a picture! - Likely 4-5 months from our DTE (dossier to Ethiopia) date of 5-18-2009.
2. Official advance authorization from the US Department of Homeland Security to bring our future child home. - Anytime
3. Wait for document submission to Ethiopian court. - A few weeks to a couple of months from referral acceptance.
4. Wait for our adoption to finalize in court. (Some people end up having multiple court dates. Finalization is NOT guaranteed on the first round). - Could go very fast, could take 6 months or more!
5. TRAVEL! - Approx. 3-6 weeks after our adoption is finalized.
It will go fast, I just am not sure if it will go fast like a lunch break or like high school.
Rebecca :)
learning patience every day
I really don't like paitence nor the act of learning it.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Another Link
I know I have gotten rather link-happy, but I can't help but share it when I run across someone or some group that is trying desperately to make a difference with their actions.
http://www.girleffect.org
http://www.girleffect.org
Monday, June 1, 2009
Great Video Clips
This is a great video clip on one family's adoption story. If you keep going, you could spend an entire day just watching amazing photojournalistic stories on the lives of different New Yorkers.
Enjoy!
http://nytimes.com/packages/html/nyregion/1-in-8-million/index.html?hp&hp#/may_wong_lee
Enjoy!
http://nytimes.com/packages/html/nyregion/1-in-8-million/index.html?hp&hp#/may_wong_lee
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