Arvid and I recently watched a really good documentary on international adoption. It is very thought provoking, and does such a good job of realistically portraying the challenges in bringing a child from another culture here. It should almost be required watching for anyone who is thinking of adopting internationally, and I would love if any of our friends and family could spare some time to watch this documentary. I feel it would really help people grasp some of the challenges that she is facing and will continue to face her whole life.
So often people think how lucky kids are who have been adopted...when in reality, an adopted child is not lucky at all. Sure, it's great that Mebira is not in an orphanage any longer, but in order to end up in our family she had to lose everything that she holds dear...her birth family, her language, her culture, her identity, familiar food/smells/customs...
We are planning on going back to Ethiopia...hopefully in the spring of 2014. Although I'm hoping this will be a positive experience in teaching Mebira about her culture and history, we also plan on visiting her relatives and I'm quite nervous about that. Imagine seeing a long lost, much loved relative who you haven't seen in years...but you are no longer able to converse with them anymore. The documentary shows what is like for a child to go back...and I bawled through a good portion of it.
If you can spare 1.5 hours sometime, especially if Mebira is a part of your life, I would love if you can watch this http://ww3.tvo.org/video/183287/somewhere-between . I seem to remember that this may only be online until the end of November, so the sooner the better!
Thanks for sharing! A
ReplyDeleteThanks so very much for sharing. When I first began watching, I thought that I'd just view about fifteen minutes of it, take a bit of info. and move on. I'm unlikely to adopt from China and am not familiar with anyone who has. As such, it didn't seem too relevant. Oh goodness, was I ever wrong! I didn't get up for an hour and a half and I'm so very glad you pointed your readers in that direction. It is truly applicable to anyone. Being the sister of a wonderful young lady who came to us through another mother's loss right here in Canada, I could still see where it relates. Lovely, thanks so much. I'll be thinking of your little lady and hoping that the trip back to Ethiopia leaves her with more comfort than questions.
ReplyDeleteAnita, yes, this is a wonderful documentary and thanks so much for posting about it.
ReplyDeleteI am very excited to hear that you are planning a trip back to Ethiopia. Although this will be difficult at times, I think this will do nothing but help Mebira -- and her Ethiopian family -- over the long-term. You are such a good mom.