Oh what a beautiful child!!!!

The town of Losova, Ukraine is a small one. When you imagine soviet Russia…it is this town. The buildings are stark…timeworn…unpretentious. Small farms border the city on all sides…a patchwork of small plots of land sowed and reaped for years by the inhabitants of the small towns that are much the fabric of rural Ukraine. (Notwithstanding the years of Stalin‘s “collective farming” in the now defunct Soviet Union). There are no stoplights in the town…no benches in the city park. There are memorials…as are everywhere…of soviet times…soldiers of wars won…and lost. We find our seats on a nearby curb…as we wait for the government to generate new birth rights to a once lost child. His name has been officially changed now…he will be American soon. We still call him Danya…I’m not certain how the transition will be made. I tell his mother that he will always be ‘Danya’ to me. “That’s okay” I am told. My “pet name” perhaps for a child that will hold the largest place in my heart of anyone I’ve encountered in life thus far. He will forever remind me of the year I spent one summer in the country of his birth.

He is dressed in a pair of cacky “Spyder” shorts and a red…gray…and white striped hooded shirt as he walks down the hallway of the orphanage for the last time. He is solemn…as is always his demeanor when surrounded by authority. Uncertainty in his face as his caretakers…the only family he has ever known…say “paka” for the last time. This place will be a distant memory in his young mind soon…a place forgotten in time. His friends will continue to parade around in their underwear on hot summer days…playing with broken toys…soiled dolls…and conversing with each other in the soon to be forgotten dialect of his homeland.

We pile into the back of the taxi…Danya on his mother’s lap…staring out the window at a world he has never seen. There are several stops to be made before he is alone with us for the first time…before he is free. The application for his passport takes us to several government buildings…finally the local police station for photos and signatures. A storm has blown in as we run back to the taxi for the final leg of his trip to freedom. The streets flood here with the lightest of showers…this day a river runs through the center of Xapkib (Kharkiv) as Dede nearly takes a spill…her new son in her arms. Someone is watching down upon her as she narrowly escapes disaster.

Curiosity is the event of the evening as Danya is let loose to explore his new surroundings. First act on the playbill is a hot bath. Wow…what a show!! Excited does not begin to describe the emotion of this young boy as he splashes around the bathtub this first night…and…well…every night since. I believe it is his favorite time of the day. The parks…fountains…new friends…all great…but bath time is his biggest thrill. He flops around like a fish out of water…giggles…designs elaborate sculptures in his hair…and is not afraid for one second to dunk his head completely under water…only to come up giggling yet again. Brushing his teeth…now that’s another issue…but he’s getting there. At least the faces he makes while the minty freshness of the toothpaste explodes in his mouth are priceless.

We manage to settle him down long enough to cut the “mullet” that they find so stylish on this side of the globe out of his hair. I’m certain that there are still people in our country who find this haircut fashionable…I’m here to tell you…it’s not! Actually…it was quite cute on him…as anything would be cute on such a beautiful child. However…we both sighed with relief…as the hair hit the kitchen floor. It’s so much cuter now.

He bounced back and forth from their room to my room…jumping across the bed…the sofa…dumping Legos…hiding in closets. His first meal was a concoction of chicken noodle soup that I created using Knorr Swiss soup mix and ramen noodles. It wasn’t half bad…Dede and I ate the same. That with a few saltines and several chunks of cheese…he was a happy boy. Oh yes…and there were a few little morsels of junk food thrown in for a first night treat. However…since there’s a nutritionist in the family…we’ll keep that part under raps… ; ) (ss).

Sleep didn’t necessarily come easy that first night…but there were never any tears. Too much excitement to actually lay down and close his eyes. Once settled in however…the zz’s began to flow. We had to be up bright and early for a 7am train to Kyiv…another adventure in itself…another blog.





I apologize for not posting sooner…but all of you parents out there know how busy a 4-year old can keep you. I wanted you to know that he is safely with his mama…and we are all having the time of our lives. I am downloading the 724 (I can't stop myself) pictures that I have snapped the last several days…and I will post some new ones over the weekend as well as a new story or two. We are waiting now on his passport which we hope to have by the end of next week…then it’s off to the American embassy for his visa. Some time in between he has to see a doctor for an exam in order to get his visa. The rest of the time is spent playing in the park…the fountain…on the playground…a trip down the river on a boat…and on…and on…. All new experiences to him. All a joy to experience with him. I will tell all…when I have time…and energy… : )

Love and peace to all back home…we soooo hope to see you soon. It will never however…be soon enough…

Das vadanya…

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