Mei Mei Reunion 2014~Celebrating the bond

I know it's strange, but way back in 2006-2007 in an orphanage in Chongqing, China, there were some tight bonds being formed.

Abbey is on the far right

These girls probably only had each other as constants in their lives as orphanage workers came and went. They probably only had each other when they went to meet their forever Moms and Dads. Moms and Dads who were blubbering like babies, looked totally different from any one they had ever seen and spoke words that were totally unintelligible to them. They might have looked to each other for comfort when those parents took them traipsing around Chongqing and Guangzhou, hearing at every corner, "Ahhh, she from Chongqing? She a spicy girl!" They (most of them),were together on a long, but cushy (thanks to a sympathetic flight attendant who upgraded them to business class),  flight to another country, where upon landing they became citizens of that country, and…then…were separated from each other, taken to several different areas of the US.

But, their parents also bonded on that trip, and became fast friends, no, closer than friends, more like family! So, they make a trip each summer to get those girls together. Some of them have to travel very far to get to the reunion,  but they do. Because those girls and parents have an incredibly special bond. Just as God knit those girls into their families, He has knit those families together. Our girls were very young when adopted, but I know that they sense there is something wonderful in being able to spend time with another girl who shared babyhood with them.


This year we traveled to Columbus, Ohio for our "Mei-Mei Reunion".  What a special time! It never ceases to amaze me how we can go a whole year apart, see each other and pick up as if we've been together all year! The girls do the same. John and I are committed to nurturing these bonds between the girls and their families. There may come a day when Abbey needs the comfort of being able to visit  with someone who has the same beginnings as she.

The girls and their siblings

Parent, girls and siblings

We had a wonderful time. The weekend was full of activity and catching up. There's way too much to share in just one post, so the next few will be dedicated to  describing the 2014 reunion.