So many of you have been reaching out (thank you!) and have checked on us because you know that we were already supposed to be in India by now. I also said that I would update everyone when we are leaving, when we get our son etc. and we haven’t yet because we are still here. Our suitcases are all packed and have been now for a month. Just sitting in our son’s room waiting. So why the holdup?
The first hold up was because of his Indian passport. It was supposed to be printed on April 10th. We received word a couple of days before that it had just been applied for. Such bummer news. It was finally printed and is currently somewhere in the mail. This is the last document that we need to plan our trip, however...
If you haven’t seen the news on India right now, I would definitely encourage you to go research and see what is going on over there. Within the last week there has been a terrible surge of covid in India. So bad that they are referring to it as a tsunami that has tragically hit India. So many are sick and so many are dying. Hospitals are maxed out and oxygen and supplies are running out. It is very devastating. Our hearts have been so heavy and hurting this week for this country. The CDC also this week moved India to a Level 4- Do Not Travel warning. This does not mean that we cannot travel because we have emergency Visas but that they highly recommend we do not because of the risk. Delhi (this is the capital of India where we will fly into and also stay for the majority of our trip to complete appointments) is currently in a 6-day lockdown. This doesn’t mean that we cannot get in and get the appointments for our son done that we need to get done though. This is a huge praise right now.
This is so scary. There are so many unknowns and so many risks involved. But our son is there. He is fully, Legally, Officially a Smith! Everything necessary has been done to officially bring him into our family. I have really struggled with thinking about going to India with the current conditions (I don’t even like flying in general so flying 15 hours into this pretty overwhelming to think about), but I also have had peace. I was sitting in my son’s room the other day thinking about all of this, looking at the packed luggage in the floor, listening to worship music and praying. Over his crib we have chosen the verse Joshua 1:9. “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go”. We chose this verse for a lot of reasons, but I read that verse and it hit me in a new way and peace flooded my heart. The fear didn’t instantly melt away, but I know that in the hard, in the uncomfortable, the unsafe and the risk, He will be there with us.
As of now, we are waiting for his passport to arrive at his orphanage. It’s taken a bit longer than we had hoped but it is supposed to be here this week. We are praying it arrives by Monday. Right now, we are hoping to leave out maybe next weekend unless flights get cancelled or India changes the rules on lockdowns, flights etc. Once we arrive to India, the plan right now is to go to our son’s city right away and head straight back to Delhi. This will likely be extra hard and traumatic for him as usually you stay in his city for a few days to make the transition easier. Then we will get all appointments completed and get out as soon as possible. We will also most likely be in lockdown in country too when we are not traveling to appts, etc. At this point we are taking it day by day because it seems like things are changing so quickly. We plan on keeping you in the know with what is happening.
We need a lot of prayer friends!! Prayer for so many things.
· Pray for India!
· Please pray that his passport will arrive to his orphanage by Monday.
· Pray for them not to shut down flights completely and to make a way to get to him.
· Pray for our son’s health, safety and his orphanage as a whole.
· Pray for our son’s heart to be prepared for the transition to come.
· Pray for Kyle and I. For health and safety and protection from covid before, during and after the trip.
We will update everyone at some point soon when we have travel dates and updates on the details.
Thank you so much for all of you who have reached out to us and who have been praying for us. So thankful for the support we have had on this journey!