Some days are hard, some days are fabulous, and most days lie between the two. Today was amazing.
In a country with over 1.3 billion people, two little children, a boy and a girl, grew up together in an amazing group foster home. They were both chosen from a bigger orphanage (a few hundred kids) to get excellent care with 6 other babies.
Yes, only 8 babies of hundreds were in this home. Others had preceded them and been matched with their forever families, and almost all of these 8 have now been taken home by their parents all over the world. A couple stayed in China, the rest are scattered across the states, mostly on the East Coast.
These two little ones spent over a year playing, fighting, and growing up together. They were separated 7 months ago when the little girl was placed in our arms. We were jealous of those families who lived close enough to drive a few hours to get the kids together, but figured that we could fly out and visit a few of Nora's old roomies occasionally. A month ago that all changed. The little boy's family came and brought him to his new home...which just happens to be about 10 miles from our home.
I'm not a math person. I don't know the actual odds of such a thing happening, but I'm thinking I should go buy my lottery ticket tomorrow. I can't even begin to fathom the likelihood of two little children from a province of over 94 million people ending up together, not once, but twice.
Today, Nora and John were able to play together once more. I'd like to say that there was an instant recognition and they fell right into playing, but they were very cautious and not really interested in each other for about the first half hour. Eventually they interacted with each other and had a fun time playing jumping games and eating dumplings. They rough-housed and tickled each other and I couldn't help wondering how many times they had played the same way.
It may not seem like such a big thing to other people, but these 7 little children are the closest thing Nora currently has to siblings. John was there for Nora's first steps, first words, and first birthday when we couldn't be. They've known each other for far longer than their parents have known them and I can't help but stand back in wonder at the miracle of today when such a large piece of my daughter's history has been returned to her.
