| Back
when Naomi and I were dating we found that neither of
us really had a strong desire to have children. Most of
our friends were getting married and having children right
away. But that just really didn’t appeal to us. |
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But
while we were talking about children, we discovered
that we both had a heart for adoption. So we agreed
that if we ever changed our minds and decided to have
children, we would give serious consideration to adopting
instead of having our own.
Well,
we were married in 97. And a few years went by and we
still felt the same way about children. Life was great
the way it was. And we didn’t see a reason to
change things. |
| And
then sometime around the beginning of 2002 Naomi began
to think that maybe, just maybe, she was changing her
mind. The idea of being a mom started to sound nice to
her. |
|
Over
the next year it became clear to Naomi that she wanted children.
And so we started talking about the possibility of adopting.
But we weren’t sure. It was a huge decision and it was
going to take some time. Naturally, there was a desire to
have our own children. But the desire to adopt was there also.
So we decided to start doing a little research
on adoption hoping that we would be influenced, one way or
the other, by what we learned. We went to a local adoption
seminar. We talked about domestic adoption verses international.
We compared open adoptions to closed adoptions. No decisions
were made, but we continued to learn as much as we could.
At this point I knew I had some catching up
to do. I still hung on to the idea of running through life
with just Naomi. As far as I was concerned, she was all I
needed. But I knew that I had to turn the corner. There was
no way I’d keep her from fulfilling such and important
part of life. And yet I didn’t want to become a dad
unless my heart was really in it.
Naomi and I are Christians. And we had been
praying about this from the time we were married. We simply
wanted to know what God’s will was for us regarding
children. And at this point I desperately needed God to move
me in either direction. Make it clear to me that we’re
not to have children. Or give me a heart for children bigger
than I could ever imagine.
Well,
a few weeks later Naomi signed us up for a seminar with an
agency that focused on adoptions from China. Naomi was excited
because she has always talked about adopting a little girl
from China. I was still searching for answers and so I was
happy to go check it out.
Well, that day I got my answer. I’ll never forget what
happened when we walked out of the seminar. We got into our
car. I turned the engine on. I looked over at Naomi. And I
said let’s do it! Let’s adopt a little girl from
China. I think I sort of caught Naomi off guard. I don’t
think she was expecting me to make a decision so quick. But
somehow I knew this was the right decision.
We
spent the next few weeks talking about it and doing more research.
Every day that passed I became more and more certain that
we were making the right decision. Everything we learned about
adoption from China confirmed it. And so the decision was
made. We would adopt a little girl from China.
Today is Sunday, October 26, 2003. And that is our story.
From here I will use the blog on the main page to keep a journal
of our experience as we adopt a child from China.
I
guess there’s only one thing left to say…
I’M GOING TO BE A DAD!!!
- Mark
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