Ninepence: the story of our journey to our daughters: Our travel approval is here!

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Our travel approval is here!

I got a call from our agency a little after 2:00. Our travel approval arrived! I ran around the office showing everyone the document ... I was high! Our agency will plan to work with the US Consulate in China to get our appointment for August 22 meaning we can plan to leave by August 10th!! We were told earlier (sometime around the time of the referral) that after 3 days in Beijing we'd get to Eliza's province on a Saturday or Sunday and get her either that Sunday or Monday. That means our "gotcha day!" will be either August 14 or 15th. Wow. We are so crazy happy! Walt and I opened a bottle of champagne when we met at home after work. We can't stop smiling.

2 comments:

ShannonJuly 27, 2011 at 4:55 PM
Hey there! I am just reading through your blog to see that you had to wait 8 weeks for your TA!! We got a referral on 6/30 and got our TA yesterday. We got our consulate date for 8/22 so perhaps our paths will cross in Guangzhou!
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NinepenceAugust 17, 2011 at 2:25 AM
Shannon, if you are able to check the blog we will indeed be in Guangzhou on the 22nd. We head there this Friday! I'll ask around for you. We are staying at the White Swan.
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The story of Ninepence

When I was a very young girl I saw a movie called, "The Inn Of The Sixth Happiness". It was a movie that I never forgot, loosely based on the life of Gladys Aylward, a missionary living in China during the 1930's.

During her time in China, she came upon a woman begging by the side of the road. With her was a 5 year old girl, covered with sores and very malnourished. She determined that the woman was not the mother of the child, but that she had kidnapped her in order to aid in her begging. So she bought the girl for ninepence, and hence called her "Ninepence". A year later, Ninepence showed up with an abandoned boy in tow, saying, "I will eat less so he can have something." Thus Gladys adopted a second orphan, "Less". (In the movie the child is a baby and Gladys calls her, Sixpence).

When the Japanese invaded China, Gladys took 100 orphans into the mountains to escape. They walked for 12 days before arriving at the Yellow River, with no way to cross. "Why don't we cross?" the children asked. "There are no boats." They said, "God can do anything. Ask Him to get us across.". They all knelt and prayed. Then they sang. Their singing was heard by a Chinese officer and patrol who found them a boat and got them across the river safely.

Gladys continued her mission to help the people and orphans of China, until her death in 1970.