German Efficiency

German efficiency is a real thing. There was a freak out moment this morning when we found out we were going to have stamp our passports during the 60 minute layover in Frankfurt. The information receptionist assured us 60 minutes would be enough time. Okay, relax, there is nothing we can do about it. If we miss our connection we will deal with it. It is out of our hands, now we just roll.

Land. Frankfurt Germany 1:10 pm. Greeted by a lady holding a sign with three cities listed on it in black marker. Sophia, okay that one. We go to her, she points to bus 2, second in the row marked Sophia. 20 other people join us off the air bus from Paris. We stop twice on our way to drop of 2 sets of people whose plane stairs await them directly off the bus. The rest of the 15 passengers arrive at the big building. They point to the door. We enter in a line. The first passengers go through the passport stamp station, stamp, stamp, 45 second. Next up us. Stamp, "geood," stamp, stamp. Good. We are then again directed out the rear door back to the same bus waiting for us. All 15 through. Now shuttled to the main terminal up the stairs, scan the boarding pass and down the ramp to the boarded plane awaiting us. We are on, 10 minutes before take off! Sweet German efficiency.

Last day in Paris.

Place Vendome

Notre Dame

Notre Dame. I have acquired a love affair with this ancient building. Never have I stepped in a building more beautiful than this building. We attended a Gregorian Chants concert late Thursday night after a busy day touring Paris. The chants were angelic voices that radiated off the crevices and arches. I could barely see the singers from where I sat, but it did not matter. The beauty of the building was intriguing and mesmerizing. My senses were fully occupied. Listening to the singers and smelling the fragrance of frankincense, my mind wandered to the day Jews and Gentiles together will worship our Lord Jesus in his holy temple in Jerusalem. I long for that day, sometimes to the point of tears, the day we will all have a home and sing with one voice together in fullness of peace.

A few pics

I wrote a wonderful post, Friday morning early. Then I bungled the text and it disappeared before I had saved it! I almost cried, 2 hours of writing and observations gone! But well, at least the photos are still here. I don't have the heart to try it again. 

Miriam sporting her new Parisian wear. She fits right in with those digs!

Picasso Museum. Loved it!

The only synagogue we walked past. Notice the iron fence. We inquired about a community catered Shabbat dinner at the Grande Synogague of Paris (not this one). We were denied because we do not belong to a synagogue in the states. Alas, we tried. I do understand due to security issues. It would have been grand!

Latkas, falafel platter, and donuts at the restaurant adjacent to the synagogue.

Armed guards patrolling the streets in the busy Jewish quarters.

French Beauties

Why are the French people so beautiful? These sorts of questions tend to haunt me. There are a few things I have observed during my 4 days here thus far. Women are not afraid to be feminine, men are men. People are generally well dressed but not overdressed. I have seen a total of 2 goth styled women. People do their hair and put on nice coats. Most women don't wear a lot of makeup They are peaceful, generally courteous.

French families touch a lot. I see couples holding hands and walking very close together. Twice now I have witnessed adult daughters holding their mothers' hands. One was on the street walking, the other was across the table dining at a restaurant as they were gazing at each other and enjoying a deep conversation.

Eye contact is a real thing. Peaceful gazing is the norm. Couples on the subway will stand close together and just look at each other. Not in a cheesy way, but as a type of communication. There is a stillness in spirit this type of gazing seems to produce.

Parents are very gentle with their little ones. I have not seen one harsh word or action in any of the subways or restaurants. This is in stark difference to the Pacific Northwest when I regularly cringe because of parental slaps and overt irritations. Parents in France will watch from a few feet away and keep a loose hand on their child while letting them explore a little.

I see happy Grandparents with grandchildren at parks, theaters, and the like as a general rule.

I know enough about neural psychology that every one of these relational items produces brain growth and connections that not only cause happy people but literally help grow the circuitry of the brain. Could this also be part of the reason people here are so beautiful? Apart from diet, and other factors, perhaps the way families interact has much more to do with general health?

The diet, of course, is another factor but that is writing for another day.

We had a down day today. Justin was not feeling very well. His digestion is out of sync, but is getting better with time. My back is very painful. I am taking a couple ibuprofens each day to get me by with all the walking. So we decided to go to a French play after leaving the hotel around noon. Miriam just read her first Charles Dickens novel in school last month so Oliver Twist seemed fitting although it being in French it was a little hard to follow but still a very neat experience in a very cool old theater.

Where's Waldo?

The Procession

The tall wooden doors swung open ten minutes before noon. We sauntered in, greeted with a light smell of frankincense and rows of chandeliers, stone walls, carved figures, and rainbows of picture windows on the walls. The cathedral was very peaceful. There was a mass in progress a couple hundred feet in front of us. Quietly we turned to the left away from the forty or so people gathered toward the front alter, to try to read the French welcome signs. I took a few photos of the church and mass in progress and viewed more statues and monuments. I looked up to the right to see the procession of people exiting the cathedral toward the open doors. The doors had not been opened to welcome visitors, they had been opened to make room for the casket to be carried out. We had mosied into a funeral! And there was the casket and odd looks to prove it. Alas, if we had been able to read French we would have known what the van parked out front of the church was! A hearse of course! It was a beautiful stone cathedral and we did tour it quietly along with a couple other people after the party had left the building.

Cathedral Saint Louis

The noon sun was illuminating the dove at the cathedral.

Marie Antoinette's Grande Trianon.

Marie Antoinette's garden at the Petite Trianon.

View from the balcony of the Petite Trianon.

Unity in Music

Basilica de Sacre Couer, a church with a vow from 1871, "They vowed to build a church dedicated to the Sacred Heart “as reparation” (i.e. as penance for infidelity and sin) for they held that the misfortunes of France had spiritual rather than political causes" (see note). Miriam sang "Pater Noster" down the long winding damp stone staircase that led to the tower on top. The Lord's Prayer sung in Latin held spiritual weight in that place, almost as if the walls were hungry for the words.

Music is an amazing thing, a gift from our Heavenly Father. Not only does it connect all the sections of a person's brain, spirit, and emotions, but it also has the ability like nothing else to unify a diverse set of people. It really is an amazing phenomenon.

Beautiful things are created in Paris. The rain stopped, the sun came out. Just outside the cathedral came the sound of singing. Walking toward the music there stood a crowd of people surrounding two street singers. People of all nationalities and color stood around. "Stand by Me," was the song. A very dark lady stood beside me lightly singing along. There were French, Norwegian, Australian, African, Indian, young children, and elderly along the semi-circle. A presence was in the air. A happy light presence. Was it the after storm or the unity the song brought? It was a beautiful moment.

Lovely graffiti.

Gargoyle on Basilica enjoying the fog.

View from Basilica

Bohemian Square on Mont Martre Butte.

Eiffel Tower

Our hotel at dawn.

Note from: http://www.sacre-coeur-montmartre.com/english/history-and-visit/article/the-origin-of-the-construction-of

Intuitive Eye in Paris

Have you ever stopped and felt a place? Yes, I said felt, not look with your eyes, but instead look with your heart? This is an intuition eye that a person's mind has but many do not stop and feel long enough to even know it is there.

We arrived this morning to Paris after a flight with no incidences and even very little turbulence 35 minutes earlier than expected. Greeted with a 2-hour customs wait and a suspicious package held up at customs for inspection far in front of us. It was all okay. Not a true scare, just routine. After customs as I was distracted trying to keep up with Justin down the long airport shuttle walker, I startled, soldiers in camo armed with machine guns walking down the aisle next to us! That is not something one sees in America! Not normally anyhow. They were ominous service men with a comforting presence. Paris thus far is an interesting place. People are friendly enough but curt. They will speak English if they can but seem wary of us. They are beautiful people with thin delicate features, sharp noses, and both dark and light skin and hair. There were even classic french sweethearts kissing and cuddling on the subway. Ahh Paris! Can you hear my intonation?

Paris feels jumpy. It does not feel peaceful, but it does not feel dangerous. It is Christmas today. I expected more peaceful stillness. I see people looking around, a lot. A nicely dressed middle aged lady paused for many seconds in front of us down a lonely staircase and stood alert watching. Across the busy street was a group of men, yelling or making noises. She seemed jumpy. A beautiful bright eyed 7 month pregnant young refugee came asking for money on the subway. The second refugee of the day with the same story in very different city locations. Young women walk alone. Women with very young children ride the street cars, in the dark by themselves. The subs and trams have far less crazy people and more average people here then say Portland. I have not been down yet to a busy city center. There I will feel more, I am sure.



SeaTac Airport with a very giddy adolescent. Four movies in a row! She was sad to leave the airplane. "I am going to have reactive attachment if you take me away" she said to me as she patted her plane seat upon arrival.

Reading a map on the subway in Paris




City street and cafe where we ate French Ravioli, glorified macaroni. Miriam thought she was in heaven.

Sleepless in Seattle

Sleepless in Seattle, evening meanderings from a picture book.

Lights from Seattle Center

Doug and Camila.

Headless gay barbies, only in Seattle.

Pug Pilates with Miss Zula.

Charity

I recall a story of a Christian man on a plane sitting with another man from a foreign country. The foreign man said to the American, "There is something I don't understand about you Americans. That is, where does this American charity come from? Why do you want to help others in need? There is so much need in the world, but what makes you want to help? I do not understand." I think it is a thought that is foreign to someone who is unfamiliar with the nature of our Heavenly Father and not raised in a Judeo-Christian culture. The Bible, over and over says that God is very concerned with the downtrodden, the orphan, the person who cannot defend himself. These people are close to God's heart and he looks after them. This thought process has been passed down generationally here in America even if we do not know where it comes from. We are very blessed to claim it as American (although it is not only American of course). Justin was asked today from an Indian co-worker why we would think of doing what we are doing? Why adopt in this manner, an older sibling not part of our extended family? Why do we care? The simple answer is that God cares. He cares very much. God has placed his Spirit inside us who believe. That Spirit also causes us to care and willingly (and joyfully) choose to be our Heavenly Father's hands and feet, even at the expense of our own vain luxury and convenience.

James 1:27 "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world."

Psalm 68:6 "God sets the lonely in families, he leads out the prisoners with singing."

Deuteronomy 10:17-19 "For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and accepts no bribes. He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the foreigner residing among you, giving them food and clothing. And you are to love those who are foreigners, for you yourselves were foreigners in Egypt. Fear the Lord your God and serve him."

Psalm 9:8 "But God will never forget the needy; the hope of the afflicted will never perish."

I could go on. There are probably hundreds of verses applicable.

Prayers

We "get in the tube" as Justin likes to put it in just a few days. There are a few items of serious prayer to communicate.

• Pray for safety in all of the travel and especially through the holidays in Paris concerning recent Islamic attacks. We plan on attending some of the large Jewish gatherings which pose a significant risk in France these days. As many others have expressed, the story of Hannukah is about not allowing current culture or ruling authorities to scare the believer into not obeying the Torah. 6,000 people showed up at the lighting of the menorah at the Eiffel Tower last year. (See the picture from my last post.) The traditional lighting was supposed to be canceled because of recent terrorist activities, but the people of Paris said "Heck No!" And I say, good for them. I am honored and looking forward to witnessing it again this year. But, it is a little scary. We are supposed to "stay away from large gatherings of any type" concerning recent terrorist attacks. It is a real concern. Please pray for us as we enjoy Paris and the Parisians' celebrations.
• Please pray we can get around Bulgaria efficiently with no mishaps in a Balkan region. We can't read or speak the language. Justin is planning on getting an international driver's permit to keep in his back pocket just in case we decide it is okay to rent a car. We have a solid 9 days of sight seeing to do and it would be nice to have freedom. Otherwise, we will be using a taxi, or bussing everything. Bulgaria is a very safe region. It is probably even safer these days than Paris because the government there is no-nonsense concerning immigrants. They don't let just anyone in. The biggest dangers in Bulgaria are simple theft and perhaps other money schemes. Otherwise, it is fairly safe concerning physical danger.
• Pray we stay healthy. It is flu season, and all the more with traveling and on airplanes.
• Pray for our introduction and bonding time with the children. This is the number one item for prayer. We want to set the transition period up nicely for them to seamlessly bond with us. Remember, they will be losing their foster homes where they have lived now for two or three years. I am sure they are thoroughly bonded with their families. Experiencing the loss of significant attachments in a person's life is the number one difficult thing to have to go through, for anyone. This is not a trite task. These children will be losing a huge portion of their lives and there will be significant grieving. So yes, a good transition is crucial and this trip is the beginning. 

Thank you, everyone, for your support and prayers. We are feeling encouraged and loved these days. I will post as many pictures as I can while traveling. If you want to be on my private adoption mailing list, please shoot me an email and let me know. 

We have our travel plans booked and will be heading out in just two weeks from now to Europe. This last month has been busy with expectation and this last week we have been trying to set bookings internationally. Things are shaping up and we are overly excited! 

Chanukah in Paris

Itinerary:

December 24th-31st we will land in Paris and spend the week of Chanukah there, and enjoy Paris style Christmas and Chanukah festivities. 

December 31st we will be headed to Sophia, Bulgaria to celebrate New Years. We were recommended New Year's eve in Sophia by our placement agency. She told us they celebrate it different than in America and it is very festive. Christmas in Bulgaria goes December 25th through January 7th. This year's holidays will truly be a multi-cultured event for us. In Sophia, we will stay a week and visit Sophia's sites and do some shopping (things are cheap in Bulgaria). We are hoping to go up to a Bulgarian ski resort-Bansko for a few days. 

January 9-13th we get to meet the children in Plovdiv. The agency has a program for us to go through. There is an activity schedule or itinerary set up for us in order to help bonding go smoothly with the children.

January 14th we head home.

I feel very spoiled in the timing of this trip. I couldn't have asked for a more perfect trip than to spend the week of Chanukah in Paris full of lights and experience an eastern New Year and Christmas.  And as an extra bonus, because of Justin's mandatory days off for the holidays we get to spend a third week in Europe. It is working out beautifully. 

Stay tuned for travel photos.