In 2002 my sister and her husband traveled with Chinese Children Adoption Inter-national (www. chinese children .org) to meet my oldest niece and bring her home. For them — for us — it was a long and arduous process of paperwork and patience and prayer. The long flight, the dozens of required documents, and the fear of SARS were concerns for the travel group, their families and friends (and for some unkind and ill-informed coworkers who shunned me for fear of infection). Of course effort and anxiety melted away once Sammie was home, and we watched in wonder as she grew and became her own person — a quiet and creative and compassionate beauty, my soul’s twin, the one who first taught my heart just how much love one person can have for another. This shadowbox is the story of Sammie and my second niece, Lexi, and so many Chinese children who wait for adoption. Here are the materials I used to represent a few aspects of their journey home — the rigidity of government regulations, the chance involved in whether a child is chosen for adoption or for the “dying room,” the ladybugs the Chinese people believe bring good luck and, yet to be crafted, likely from felt, the Kanji symbol for home. Most prominent is The Red Thread, which illustrates the ancient Chinese saying that when babies are born, they are already connected by that thread to those who will be important in their lives. The thread may be stretched thin or twisted into knots, but it can never be broken. And most important is the child.
Auntie loves her girls more than she can ever say...
Note: I am looking for more figurines like this one. Please contact me if you have one or know where I might find others. I am always looking for vintage porcelain figurines, especially of children.
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