From Emily: Saturday 5/17

Five years ago, my parents decided to adopt. I was eight then and was thrilled at the prospect of another sibling, but did not share my parent’s sentiments concerning Russia. Fast forward 5yrs to when we went on our first trip to Russia and met Andrew and Kathlena. While we were in St. Petersburg we did a lot of touring, and really got a chance to get to know Russia, and it’s people, I gradually began to fall in love with this country, it’s bitter cold artic wind, it’s beautiful old buildings, it’s history, and it’s rather melancholy way of life.

Then upon returning home we went into a three-month in-depth study of Russian history. We read The House by the Dvina –an autobiography of a survivor of the time of the Russian revolutions and the Soviet era. In addition to this I did a great deal of complementary online research. It was through this time I truly began to love Russia, despite its flaws. I learned to love this country as I do my own, and this love reached an augmenting climax on the flight to Moscow.

After nine and a half hours of flying over the Atlantic Ocean, Greenland, Sweden and various other countries, we slowly began to descend as we neared the capital of Russia. I switched seats with J.Michael and began taking pictures of the scenery out the window. As the little quilt patches began to take shape we suddenly went into a colossal cloud. At times, the ever-present airplane wing-several rows in front of us-would vanish in the dense fog, only to reappear for but a moment.

We were in the cloud for several minutes when unpredictably we burst out of the cloud and had an unobstructed view of the land below us. My breath caught in my throat as I beheld the immense beauty that was before me. Beautiful crystal blue rivers woven through green meadows, diminutive villages, and fields of minute yellow flowers. The setting sun shone favorably upon this immaculate scene, sending it’s warm and inviting rays of pink, purple, and golden yellow out to embrace the glorious scene.

I was finished. Like it or not I was in love with Russia, for better of worse.

5/17/o8

We are now on a plane to Arkhangel’sk, the time is drawing nearer. We have been waiting five years for this day to come; yet it seems so surreal. We have been talking about the day “when there are six of us” for some time now, but it always was a distant, far-off event. A dream, that is always before us, never with us, much less behind us.

Yet here I am, on a Russian plane, which is even now descending upon my brother and sister’s homeland. In a matter of days we will appear in Russian court and Andrew and Kathlena will be adopted into our family “once and for all”.