Once Y left things shut down around the house. We were in a mental funk since she was gone. Well, not completely shut down. We were busy pulling together all of the documentation needed for the adoption. Everything in triplicate, no photo copies, no black ink, no typos, all must be notarized and then the validity of that notary validated. Basically, lots of running around with the expectation that we'll have to do something over again. Nobody gets everything right and we were no exception. The good side about all the running around is that it kept us busy.
It was my job to ship the papers out. I wanted it shipped out in the fastest and safest way possible.
In my wisdom I decided that going directly to a DHL hub would save time and ensure that the papers were shipped correctly. Nope. When you ship from the hub, DHL strictly follows the rules. One of the rules is that a document that contains more than 35 pages must be shipped under a corporate bill. Insurance was recommended with the assurance that there would be no problems with customs. I also allowed the rep to inspect the papers and include the pictures in the content list. So as I would find out too late these were three critical mistakes. When an insurance value is assigned, the value is listed on the waybill and appears as a taxable value. So when the package got over to the Ukraine customs grabbed a hold of it and held it hostage to the tune of 243.00. If I had not listed a value but indicated that pictures were in the box then a duty still would have been slapped on the box. Why? Because it turns out that pictures are a taxable item!!! So our Ukrainian coordinator needed to go to customs to pick up the box. A real pain when he is currently running around the country working on getting adoptions completed. But the last straw was that the box was shipped under a corporate label. That means that it could not be picked up unless the receiver has a corporate account with DHL!!! REALLY would have been nice to know that! The result? Our paperwork was stuck in customs for a month which delayed our leave date to this Sunday.
Do not ever, under any circumstances, try to save time by dropping the package off at a DHL hub!
I beat myself up for weeks waiting for that package to get back. While waiting those long weeks, thoughts ran through my head and came up in prayer countless times asking how I could mess a package drop off so royally.. Scary thing asking questions in a prayer. Many times you'll get answers in the most unexpected ways. While I didn't see it immediately, during that delay I watched God use every minute.
- He used my wife to support people that may have otherwise fell through the cracks
- My daughter and I both decided to be baptized
- We were given a chance to see one of the most direct displays of the difference between Christs teachings and what Christmas has come to mean to so many people.
- The delay was a sobering experience that forced us to adjust our outlook on life and what is truly important. We were given a gift that allowed us to grow in our walk together and most importantly for this trip, realize that the control that we thought we had was a cruel and destructive illusion.
The realization that He is in control and that we are simply worker bees given the chance to follow his instructions has given both of us a new perspective on the process. Before the goal was to get Y home as soon as possible. I needed to get her back. I wanted to make my family whole. I had lots of I's going on and while they may have been well intentioned, they were missing the point of why we were guided into this process in the first place.
There is still a sense of urgency, it just shifted from focusing on the adoption process to seeing the kids we met this summer and meet the kids we've heard and read about. We have heard stories from others who have traveled to the orphanages in the Ukraine but I am certain that they will pale in comparison to actually being there. I welcome the adventure and I know that any discomfort we encounter will pale in comparison to the relationships we make and the things we learn. I welcome this gift and thank God for the time that I didn't know I needed. If I hadn't blown the shipping I might have blown the bigger opportunity placed before me to grow and learn from these dear hearts.
Today these baby birds to Flew! We stepped off of American soil and out into a world that neither of us have directly encountered. We will no doubt be in free fall for a while and we may even smack a few branches in the process but I welcome the experience, hits and all. Ours eyes have been opened and were excited to see what He brings our way. Let the adventure continue!!!
Amen!
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