Saying Goodbye to Da Tong ... A Visit to Lia's Orphanage

"Praying for our Trip"

Today was a bittersweet day for all of us. We finally got to go to Lia's orphanage in Datong and meet those who have cared for her for the past year or so. It was bittersweet, because even though we got to learn a little more about Lia Faith, we saw many other kids still there in the orphanage waiting and wanting for someone to take them home. If you have never looked into the eyes of a fatherless, orphaned child and seen the look that says "Please love me," then forgive me if this post seems a bit unpolished. Feeling the absence of love that exists in these children's lives can have that effect on you.



First, the journey. We left Tai Yuan this morning at 7:30 on a 4 hour trip north. When we began our journey, the temperature was in the upper teens. And as the morning progressed, the temperature decreased, even though the sun rose to offer a hope of warmer temperatures. By the time we reached the mountains about half way between Tai Yuan and Datong, ice had formed on all the windows. And everything outside was frozen. Ice filled the fields between the mountain peaks, though I'm not sure where it came from since the annual preciptation is somewhere between none and a few inches!



On the way, we passed over a branch of the Yellow River, where some say civilization began. We also passed by a section of the Great Wall, still in pretty good shape, but deteriorating nonetheless. We saw many "cave homes," as Emily called them, where the northern Chinese dwell. Some of these were actually nice homes built into the mountains, but most were simply caves and I was left to wonder what kind of life their owners led.



Close to Tai Yuan and Da Tong, the stinch of coal or something burning filled the air so intensely that on occasion the entire horizon would turn black, almost like an impending thunderstorm. As we would enter one of these "coal storms," visibility would drop to nearly nothing. One of these coal storms blanketed our return to Tai Yuan so thickly that you could barely see the buildings on either side of the road. With the varying modes of transportation and attire to combat the smog, it gave the appearance of a Mad Max movie set, only it was real. These unfortunate people are forced to live in these conditions, so please pray for both Tay Yuan and Da Tong.



We also saw many small towns and settlements along the way and were simply confused by the pace of life and the reasons for some of the things that people do. For example, there were the occasional highway sweepers, using straw brooms to sweep dust off the road - basically an interstate highway. And in the middle of a field in the middle of nowhere, you would catch a glimpse of a Chinese man pushing a wheelbarrow through the field gathering something unknown for an unknown reason. There were no houses or settlements within sight. My only conclusion was that this was an inhabitant of one of the aforementioned cave homes.

"Gateway to Da Tong"





We finally reached the orphanage around noon and were whisked through at breakneck speed. We met the "owner" of the orphange and talked about Rong Rong's stay there. We were shown where she slept and where she played. We were able to take a few pictures with her former roommates and with some of the staff. We won't have near the amount of video that we took at Lily's orphanage because of the quick pace, but at least we got some video. We did take a lot of pictures that we hope will be very important to Lia as she grows up.

"Wah Duh Ba Ba!"

"Wah Duh Ma Ma!"



Overall, I think Rong Rong was well taken care of. The staff was nice and the orphanage was generally better kept than Lily's was, but both Connie and I felt like the nannys at Lily's orphanage were more passionate in their love for Lily. That's probably because, as we learned, Lia Faith hadn't been at the orphanage long, less than a year. And the ratio of nannys to children was smaller here. The facilities were nice and the children seemed to be well taken care of and happy. The staff seemed greatly interested in making sure we knew how well they took care of the children. The director and his interpreter were very nice and we enjoyed our talk with them.

"Lily Grace is not in that Jacket in Case You're Wondering!"


After we left the orphanage, we went to a "famous" Chinese restaurant in Da Tong, where we met Jessica and Stephen and Angela for lunch. We had a room to ourselves, while a wedding was being held just outside - the bride wore a bright red, almost southern belle style dress. I missed the wedding as we walked through, because I was chasing after Lily Grace. Stephen and Jessica and Angela have been visiting Lia's orphanage for quite some time. They are from the southeast US. We wanted to meet them and they wanted to say goodbye to Rong Rong, so it was a great opportunity. Lunch was a classic Chinese setup with a lazy susan filled with Chinese delicacies, including Peking Duck.





There were 10 people in our party and we were all fed for a mere 299 RMB, about $40! We brought Stephen and Jessica a few Christmas presents, the most important being 20 packs of spaghetti sauce and seven packs of Reeses Pieces! They gave us an awesome book for Lia Faith, along with all the photos they have taken of her. The book is about the Gospel and is written in both English and Chinese. Oh, and Jessica made us some Christmas cookies. How blessed are we that our angel in Datong made cookies for us!

"Christmas Presents for Stephen and Jessica"

After lunch, our guide had a surprise for us. She had managed to find out where Lia Faith was found and she took us there. We got to take pictures for Lia of her finding place outside the No. 3 Hospital, a large hospital in downtown Datong. We were very thankful to both our driver and to our guide for taking the time to take us there. We think this will be important to Lia one day.





Having accomplished everything we could here in Tai Yuan, tomorrow we will leave for Guangzhou, where last report the temperatures were in the upper 70s!!!! There we will wait for an appointment with the US Consulate to get an immigrant visa for Lia Faith.

"Leaving Da Tong"

Lia Faith is the sweetest, funniest little girl we've ever met. She's a little mischievious and has begun talking incessantly, in Chinese of course. She likes to yell something at Austin and then just laugh. And if he doesn't reply, she gets louder and louder. The coolest thing she says so far is "Wah duh, guh guh. Wah duh ma ma. Wah duh ba ba. Wah duh jei jei." This translates to "I have a brother, I have a mother, I have a daddy, and I have a sister!"

"Peek a boo"

See you in Guangzhou,

Love,
Jerry, Connie, Austin, Lily Grace, and Lia Faith
Green, Party of Five