OUR ADOPTION STORY

I had not written much about my story, except for what I wrote on  Where do babies come from?  I felt I wanted and needed  to share with you now that a community is building up.

I feel blessed to be able to contribute to families with adopted children and I am in God´s hands to see where this might lead in terms of service.  So far, thanks to this blogging adventure, I have been a lot more in touch with my motherhood, culture and my country's cry for help. I also ask from all of you to keep our family in your prayers, we will do the same.

I met my son when he was four and his dad two years later.  It was April 1994, I was sent by a priest friend to help out with the field trip  a boys home in Guatemala, was taking on Easter week. 

The way K, the home’s director, would describe it is that I showed up a week previous to the trip, in my yellow Honda CRX (very hip then),  to find out the details of the trip. She went over the plans with me just out of respect to the priest that had recommended me. In her mind she was just thinking, ‘this preppie girl won’t last a day’. She would also admit she stood corrected.

A week later, I reported for duty.  The task K gave me was to take a particular boy under my wing. Andrea said, “Alex unlike the other boys will not look to hang out with the volunteers nor seek attention. He is not the one to go hug you or sit on you lap”.   When I said, “Sure, I can do that!” I didn’t know I was fulfilling a lifetime calling.

After the excursion I kept volunteering with night and day shifts at the home.  I took Alex once or twice a month to outings and was in charge of his schooling and clothing needs. Every time I came in the home all the other boys would start calling “Alex, Alex! Cynthia is here.” Alex would then come out all proud and with a cool walk to greet me.  Later that year we baptized him. I was his godmother. I often thought of him as my son and could envision an incredible life as his mom but at the same time I was 24, going to college, dating and hanging out.

In April 1996 after graduating I went backpacking to Europe and met my husband, Alex´s dad, Tom. During the five months I was in Europe I wrote to Alex frequently and introduced him to Tom by picture.  Tom for whatever strange reason, call it love, followed me to Guatemala and in November 1997 we got married. Once Tom and Alex met, the same angels that came down on Easter week 1994 where amongst us.

Alex would spend the weekends with us and every weekend it got harder and harder to drop him off, we were all usually in tears. In June 1998 Alex came to live with us permanently as we started the adoption process to make official what was true since birth. Alex is now 19 and is along with our two other children our pride and joy.