20 July 21, 2010 Day 1--- Technically speaking
The start of our trip to Levi… seems real now, I have to pack! Yes, I know we are supposed to be leaving soon… it is already almost 3 pm. We had thought we would maybe leave about 1, Beth would be ready, I would come home from work, things would just work to be on the road about 1’ish.
Never happens the way you think it will. Does it? But it does happen the way God will’s, so except the change in plans, enjoy the moment and see what each day brings.
The way we started on the road at 3:30 pm, put us in Corvallis about 7:30, just in time to hit Costco, fuel up and then meet my Mom< (LaVerne) and Tyler for dinner. Ana and Isaac ( our daughter in law and Grandson) are down in Klamath Falls, so he is batching while working his summer job in the Fish Museum/Fish Lab repacking samples from the 30’s, 40’s and so on. He loves it. We had a nice meal with them and then headed north to Portland to meet up with my sister Faith who is going with us to China, and her husband Rick who came to see us off. We shared a hotel room in Portland for the 4 hours we were going to be in bed and of course we sat up and talked a bit, laughed a bit, and then tried to sleep.
21 July 2010 -Day 2 Day of departure from the US.
I am not sure if it was because the gravity of the adventure we are embarking on was weighing heavy on my heart, or the vision of my little Princess Sophie sobbing as they left for Grandma’s house, or the fact that my sister did not want the AC on in our hotel room and it was like one bajillion degree’s in our room, but I did not sleep well. I kept looking the clock from midnight all the way up to the time I got up at 3:58 am, waiting for the time to head to the Airport. As we got packed, we again were slightly amazed that between the three of us, we have less than 90 pounds worth of checked baggage! WOW.
After parking, checking in and then finding our terminal, the wait began… Coffee & a bagel from Starbucks helped pass the hour before we boarded. Purchased a good book to read on the plane and we were off. We flew into San Francisco, found our terminal and then weighted a few hours. We had lunch at a Deli where we ate with dad and mom Mohler in 2006 when we left for our Journey to Sophie. That is where I also purchased a bag of babybel cheese, as shown here in this most colorful and excellent closeup… LOVE THE COLOR CONTRAST!
Then we parted ways. Beth and Faith went shopping (and chocolate buying…) and I went and had a seated chair massage hoping to get the kinks worked out of my shoulders and neck before we flew again. WONDERFUL!!! Feel much better. I could not find the girls, so I went to the gate and waited for them and after about 15 minutes, all of a sudden it was time to board
Chaos is the best way to describe the boarding procedure. The announcements were made by the attendants in English and Chinese, and we were humored to watch the poor ticket agent repeatedly shew away the people were not in the right boarding group until it was their turn. As she took our passes, she said “this flight drives me crazy”. Hmmm, what have we got ourselves into! We found our seats near the very back of the plane, got settled in and wham, after we took off, I had a good 10 minute power nap! When I woke up, we chatted, and after about 5 minutes this ANGEL in a flight attendants uniform came back to our row and said “we would like to have one of you come up to the PLUS seats, we need to fill a few rows, would you mind…” Beth and Faith gave me the go ahead, so I went from row 57 to row 25. Three seats to myself, and an extra 5 inches of legroom! THANK YOU LORD! I feel bad for the girls in the back, and of course I miss my bride, but with me gone, they can spread out and I feel like I have a whole acre to myself. Now here it is, almost 10 hours past the time we boarded, I had an INCREDIBLE 6 hours of nap time, and unfortunately missed the airline food.. and snacks… stuck with my granola bars, baby gouda cheese and saltines!!!! Now I notice the significance of my earlier Deli shop photo of my friend the cheese! First I was fascinated by my desire to “do something” different with photos on this trip to china, NOW I know it was a sign!! Anyway you slice it, the cheese hit the spot!
I have had the chance to reflect on the trip so far, and one thing I find amazing is how God use’s the situation, and US (if we are obedient) to accomplish His will. Let me explain further. After 6+ hours of sleeping a 6 foot frame in to a 4 foot row of seats ( NOT), I needed to stretch. I stood and engaged a man near me in conversation. He was traveling to China to visit a builder of Patio Furniture. His company sends him on a regular basis… and he was bringing a woman from Salt Lake with him who also works for the same company. One thing led to another, and being the shy guy I am, I told them we were on a trip to get Levi from China. They were interested in the adoption stuff, so I shared about Sophie, and Amie, and then finally the guy left and she wanted to hear the “Levi story” so we stood there and I started with the beginning… way back in November of 2009, and brought her up to speed with where we are at today. She was so interested. Turns out, long story short, she has an interest in adopting a little Chinese girl. Seems she has 2 boys, 13 & 9, and after working with this company and her Chinese friends for 8 years, she feels drawn to the adoption idea. Her name escapes me, Donette? Maybe…?, but she was definitely interested. So I of course did the proud father thing, told her about Ty & Ana and Isaac, Travis & Jenny, Lindsey & John, Jordan and Hannah, and as I mentioned earlier, Sophie and Amie. I shared pics from our dossier file, and then went to see my beauty in the back of the bus and got her photo book with more pics of Levi and all the other 6 kids. In the end, we had a great visit as I shared how God worked this whole thing from beginning to end, finances, timing, travel… and now, the chance to share our story, with a stranger who has the desire to look at adoption… AMAZING how God works. Nothing short of the providence of God to put me in the “nice” seats. He was not worried about my leg room, he was giving me the opportunity to share His love and plan for my family with another who is open to his leading in this area. I sent her with my AWAA business card, and wrote our blog address on the back. I hope she follows this story. If you do… (yes.. United Flight 889, Row 26 seat B) PLEASE email me your name and a photo of your family so I can pray for you guys! I would love to see how God works the story for you in the end! That’s end for now. I will wrap up this travel day this evening when we get to Beijing! Battery is going, so must I!
Day 2, 8:00 pm – got to Beijing around 3:30 today and were at hotel by 4:30. We were met by our old friend Sherry, the guide from our first trip and got squared away at our hotel. Not sure why, but we are having tech difficulties even reading the facebook or blogspot pages. Until we get it figured out, we will send our updates to Lindsey to post for us. Time to close our day down and hit the sack. Lots of hours to make up for…. Or catch up on.
May God bless you on your Thursday… Ours is over and we Thank Him for our safe arrival and a good start to our 2010 China adventure.
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