Retrieving the mail always makes one's heart skip a beat when the stack of letters contains an envelope from the US Department of Homeland Security. In that envelope were our appointments to have our fingerprints taken, yet again, joining our I-800A form already in progress in the hopes that we will become approved as desirable guardians of an orphan for a second time.
Yesterday at 11am we arrived at the appropriate office, prepared to moo, as before, in the long wait in a herd of people waiting to complete various citizenship tasks. We brought books to read and a change-filled pocket to stuff into the waiting room vending machines for "nourishment" throughout the day. Much to our surprise, the procedure has improved, streamlining the process since our first adoption. We were in and out of the office so fast that we never had an opportunity to even crack a book.
Looking back, we were so incredibly nervous the first time; I even brought our whole adoption 3 ring binder in addition to the simple appointment letter and driver's license they require, just to play it safe. This time we openly chatted up our experience with the fingerprinting technicians who were eager to hear that we are attempting a second adoption. We also shared that we will probably be back, as we have yet to know very many adopting families, ourselves included, who have managed to complete an adoption before the expiration date on their fingerprints.
What fascinated me most about this place the first time holds true today - the diversity of people entering this facility. In the mere 45 minutes spent in this office, countless countries were represented giving one just a small sample of our neighbors sharing the borders of Washington state. Concentrating on the hum of the conversation, you could hear an assortment of languages spoken - some recognizable, others not. We saw a rainbow, at a glance, of colored clothing in various styles not indigenous to the Pacific Northwest and yet, all of these people have somehow come to find this place as Home. Amazing.
5 comments:
Congrats on your fingerprint appointment. Shane and I were so nervous back in November when we went to have ours done! We are still waiting approval!gidget
Congrats on that appointment! A huge step to cross off the list :). Maybe you will complete your adoption before having to get them re-done :).
Glad to hear the process has streamlined. One bonus of living in a rural state - we were the only ones in the whole building last time. (We were also lucky enough to not need them redone).
We're hoping the I-800's speed up!
Kristy
I remember wishing I could somehow know the story of each person waiting along with us -- and then we saw a couple from our church, who were adopting two girls from Ethiopia! What a coincidence to have our appointments on the same day . . . of course, their girls were home within 6 months, while we made a return visit due to expiration. :o)
It's fun to watch as you do it all over, much more sure of yourselves this time around!
-- Nancy
How wonderful that your appointment went so smoothly!!! It is always fun to be pleasantly surprised.. I did the same thing, packing books, bringing letters, etc....very nervous being our first time, and we walked out of there so quickly I was amazed. Getting our fingerprints taken was actually was the quickest step of our process so far. Congrats on getting another step checked off the list!
April :-)
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