Back home at Refuge Ranch - with Daniel!

After my last email/blog entry I left you on Monday night as we were preparing to go to bed. We enjoyed breakfast in our hotel room (treated ourselves to room service!) and spent the morning catching up on banking and other internet stuff. We left our hotel and made the 40 minute drive back to the town of Hueyapan where John, Maria and Daniel live.

This is Daniel with the missionaries who have been taking care of him:

John and Maria and their daughter, Hannah.

We were to meet the city lawyer at noon in order to draw up the letter giving us permission to take Daniel with us and then have the judge stamp his approval on the letter. Maria, the local missionary, was to meet us at the lawyer's office at noon with Daniel's mother. Victor and I arrived about 15 minutes earlier and the lawyer was in his office. This was a bit suprising to us because it is rare for somebody in Mexico to arrive on time, much less early, and the lawyer had said he wouldn't be in his office until noon. He was busy at the time so we waited in the hallway. While we were waiting, the DIF director walked by, greeted us and went into the lawyer's office. If you remember, we had met with the DIF director the day before had she had claimed that the DIF could not help us and was the one who sent us the lawyer. As far as she knew, the lawyer was going to take care of the court process to have us declared legal guardians for Daniel, which would have taken 2-3 months, and that Daniel was going to stay there in Hueyapan during that time. So, I think she was a little surprised to see us waiting there to speak to the lawyer. When she walked out of the lawyer's office, she said we could go in. We went in and immediately noticed that the lawyer's attitude had completely changed from the day before. He was not nearly as nice, did not make eye contact as well and was short and to the point. His point? The judge was on vacation and wouldn't be in again until August 3 and nothing could be done until August 3. No more options, no more possiblities, the end!

We walked out rather dumbfounded. I was fighting tears and wanted to scream, shrivel up, run back in there and shake the lawyer, grab Daniel and go - anything! But, by the grace of God I kept my composure. Victor and walked out of the municipal building and looked at each other with huge question marks in our eyes. Maria had not yet shown up with Daniel's mother. I said: "Let's pray." We leaned up against a concrete column and prayed - for God to do anything, show us anything! Right after opening our eyes, Maria pulled up, got out of her mini-van and said: "We've got problems." My first thought was: "You aren't the only one!" She promptly continued by explaining that Daniel's mother could not come to sign the papers! It wasn't that she was unwilling to - the problem was much more serious than that. If you recall, we had had a small struggle getting her out of her village the day before because her husband wasn't present and because she had been quite ill. Well, when Maria, with her mother, went back up to the village Tues. morning to pick up Daniel's mom, Daniel's mother's mother-in-law came out of the wooden/thatched roof hut and said that nobody was taking Elena (Daniel's mother) anywhere. She said that Elena was in bed dying and that it was our fault!

Let me explain! These villages are within an hour of a town, Catemaco, that is our nation's witchcraft capital! Hence, Elena's village is steeped in witchcraft. Interestingly enough, those who practice witchcraft and believe in witchcraft hate Christians with a passion. Why? Because when Christians are around their witchcraft doesn't work! The power of Christ and the presence of the Holy Spirit prevent the witchcraft from having any effect! So, Elena's family wanted to "cure" her using witchcraft, but since Elena had spent the day before with us, the witchcraft was blocked and now Elena was even more ill than before. So, when Maria and her mother arrived at Elena's hut, Elena's new husband was there and told Maria and her mother that they could go in to see Elena. But, Elena's mother-in-law came storming out of the hut and said nobody was going to get in to see Elena because it was our fault that she was so ill and they had brought in the best local witches and they were in the midst of doing their work to cure Elena. Maria's mother wanted to barge in, but Maria held her back, knowing it would do no good. When Elena heard Maria's voice she tried to get out of bed, but her mother-in-law called out: "She is trying to get up! She is trying to get up!" Elena's husband went into the hut and neither he nor she came out again.

This is the road heading up the village where Elena, Daniel's birth mother, lives.

So, Maria and her mother went back down the mountain to Hueyapan, where Victor and I were waiting. As they came down the mountain, Maria was thinking about how we could take Daniel home. Daniel had responded so well to us and Maria and her family were leaving for Canada the 30th of this month, so we were all anxious for him to come home with us. Then, Maria had a brainstorm. Maria employs a young woman to help with the cleaning and dishes in her home. In fact, this young lady is Elena's (Daniel's mother) cousin - and is from the same village as Elena! The two young woman look very much like one another and obviously come from the same village (their build, physical characteristics and dress). So, when Maria got home from going to see Daniel's mother, she promptly informed her young employee that she was now Daniel's mother and would be signing the letter allowing Daniel to come home with us!

OK, that is the background information of what was going on with Maria while Victor and I were in the lawyer's office being told that the judge was unavailable. So, Victor and I finish praying, Maria shows up, gets out of her van, tells us there was a problem (not even knowing about the situation with the judge) and says: "I couldn't get Daniel's mother, but he has another one now." And her household employee, whom we know, gets out of the van! She had an envelope in her hand where she had been practicing her cousin's signature (Daniel's mother's signature!). It was only three letters - her first initial and the initials of her two last names. We then informed Maria about the absence of the judge. She stood there for a minute and said: "Let me go see. I know the judge and I know where he lives!" She walked into the city building and about two minutes later walked out and said: "The judge is in there and will draw up the letter and sign it! He asked if Daniel's mother was here and I said yes!"

When she told us that the judge was in there I just about ran in there to punch that little lying lawyer in the nose! I couldn't believe it! But, then Maria told the rest of the story! She walked into the judge's office and he was there. She asked him if he was on vacation and he responded, "Yes, but I just came over here to run a quick errand and you happened to catch me here." Wow! We knew that Maria didn't "happen" to catch him there - we knew that it was a divine appointment, set up by the Lord himself as an answer to your and our prayers! Victor, Maria and Daniel's mother's cousin walked in and came out no more than 10 minutes later with the letter allowing us to take Daniel home signed! (I didn't go in because my light skin color, blonde hair and blue eyes cause more problems than you can imagine!) So much for the Christian lawyer who was soooo willing to help us! We have concluded that he was waiting for an offer for a bribe from us, but didn't ask for one because he could be arrested for soliciting a bribe, but would have been more than willing to accept one! We never considered offering because he truly seemed to be on our side and willing to help us. Had a bribe occurred to us on Monday, this could have all been taken care of in a matter of minutes! However, we thank the Lord for the extra day we spent there to become even more attached to Daniel and to see, firsthand, the hell that Daniel's mother is living so that we can keep her in our prayers!

(Note - this note was added to this blog on August 24, 2009. Since bringing Daniel home, we have decided to obtain Daniel's mother's signature on the necessary documents. This is due to several reasons. First and foremost, we received some expressions of concern from Fishers of Men supporters regarding Daniel's mother's cousin signing in her place, although it was done in keeping with his mother's wishes and desires. We do not want to give the impression that we participate in illegal activity in order to bring children into our family, because that is not the case. So, in order to respond to those concerns we will be seeking Daniel's mother's signature. Also, after visiting the pediatric cardiologist in Mexico City, we were told that Daniel will need a heart cath and open heart surgery. Since both of these procedures are quite risky, we agree that it is best to have Daniel's mother's signature before moving forward with those medical procedures. Thank you for your understanding and comprehension of this very unique situation. End of note.)

We got in the car, drove to Maria's place and picked up our Daniel! Within a half an hour he was strapped into his car seat (for the first time ever!) and we were on the way home!

He was a GREAT kid the entire eight hour drive home - with only two rest stop breaks! I think he was so in shock about all the new things going on around him that he didn't have a chance to even fuss! He spent awhile examining the car seat straps and buckles, then a couple of hours looking out the window, then he took a good nap and after that he would spend a half an hour to 45 minutes examining any toy that I would give him. Every experience is a new experience! We did discover he is deathly afraid of dogs! I had brought along a doggy puppet to help entertain him. The only time I had seen him cry was as soon as I took that puppet out he started screaming and crying! Ooops! Live and learn! He loves socks (he has gone barefoot or in sandals his entire life) and eats like a man!

We got home at 9:00 last night at which time he was bombarded by his new siblings - especially the younger ones - eager to hug, kiss, carry and show him the place! I gave him a bath, which he cried at at first, but quickly got accustomed to, and then put him to bed. We started our bedtime routine and he only whimpered about 10 minutes before falling asleep. He slept all night without a peep and when I peeked in at 7:30 this morning he was sitting up in bed quietly, so I got him up! That sure was an easy night! This morning he refused to let go of me for the first couple of hours. By mid-morning he would go with different people and by this afternoon was walking around the house on his own, exploring a bit more.

As for his heart condition, we thank God for it because that was his ticket out of that village. The judge was willing to draw up the letter because Daniel would never get the medical treatment that he needs in his home village. In fact, Daniel's mother is 21 years old and has three other children, ages 7, 5 and 3 that she has given away to other local families that have the means to raise them. She did this for two reasons - her four children are the result of incest, as she was forced to live with her step-father as his wife (along with her mother!) and, after escaping those conditions earlier this year, she wants no reminder of that abuse and previous life as she tries to start life over again. She also realized that she would never have the resources needed to give her children a chance at life. However, she hadn't given Daniel away because he was the youngest, until she discovered his heart condition and realized she would never have a way to get him the help he needs. So, if the purpose of his heart condition was to get him out of there - the poverty, the witchcraft, etc. - then we know the Lord can heal him because the illness' purpose has been fulfilled. However, if the Lord allows his illness to continue, He will guide us in getting Daniel the help that he needs and God will be glorified through whatever happens!

One last story - for those who want to keep reading! This is not nearly as glorious, but I enjoy sharing stories that show our human sides too and reveal our weaknesses because then you can be convinced that the only reason that we get anything done for the Lord isn't because of us, but is due to His grace, mercy and great joy in using His imperfect creations for His work! I had held up great all weekend while riding the roller coaster of "We have Daniel. We don't have Daniel. We have Daniel. We don't have Daniel." All day yesterday, on the drive home, the only thing I could think about was a big, hot hamburger, steamy french fries and a vanilla shake from any fast food joing! We pushed on driving and pushed on driving trying to get through a mountainous area before evening when the highway tends to be covered by fog and makes driving rather treacherous. We made it through that area with no problem and arrived in Puebla around dinnertime - perfect, a big city! There's got to be a fast food joint around here. We drove through the entire city and never saw a fast food joint! Finally, on the other side of the city, there was one gas station and a greasy food joint there - our last option. We went in and I asked for a chicken sandwich - all they had was ham and they were closing so we would have to take it to go! So, we bought our three, cold ham sandwiches on hard bread and canned juice. I cried through the entire meal as we drove through the rain! The brave, Godly missionary cried over a cold ham sandwich! How ridiculous! I can handle the big stuff - but it is the little stuff that gets to me! Then, I felt guilty because I should be thankful for having something to eat - there are thousands of people around the world who don't have anything to eat day after day! After my tears were shed, I asked the Lord for forgiveness and asked Victor to forgive me for telling him he was an awful husband for not providing a hot meal for us (oops!) Guess what? Rosa, our cook, didn't even know about this story and guess what is on the menu tonight? HAMBURGERS! Boy, am I going to enjoy dinner!

Daniel playing on his new rocking horse with Dale Bridge, a member of this week's work team! Love that smile - actually, both smiles, Daniel's and Dale's!

Love you all so much!

Julie