I think going to China in person to adopt is the best thing for all concerned. It’s a long and expensive trip, but our trips to China to adopt our daughters were so important to both them and to us. From our travels and stays in China we were able to see where they were from and to get a feeling for the people of their provinces. When one of my daughters asks about China and its people I am able to speak to them with real knowledge. We are able to explain the poverty that forced their mothers to abandon them. We are also able to tell them about the old ladies who fussed over them in the streets and all the people who patted them on the head and called them beautiful. I can tell them about the smells of food in the streets and the color of the sky. And with each story I tell, they have a stronger sense of self and of their history, which is so important to them.
I don’t fault the Chinese for requiring we travel to adopt. It is the best thing for all concerned.
I didn’t mean to imply that going to China (or Russia) to adopt a child wasn’t a good thing. But it does add to the cost and anyone seeking to adopt will need to consider it.
Its a tragedy that there are willing parents who would take these children but they lack the $30k to complete the process.
Conditions for orphans and the extremely poor are terrible in so many parts of the world. In most cases its due to the government and corruption preventing people from caring for themselves. This is the global community that people like Obama seek to bring to America.