Day 5

Morning:

One week ago today my journey began and it is not yet half over. This morning and the entire day proved to be a very challenging day for me.  Camellia was a little tired and cranky this morning. Perhaps she was cranky as a result of being tricked into eating a bowl of caramelized onions for dinner (confused? See yesterday’s blog post).  She ate breakfast well, interacted with Ma Ma, her two ge ge, and me me (finally figured out what she’s been saying). Someone at the orphanage must have prepared her because she does call Jack, Ian, and Chloe by the Chinese names for big brother and big sister. Nevertheless, I am starting to suffer from being homesick. It’s hard being away from Nicki and the kids for so long, and Skype isn’t the most cooperative tool, so it’s hit or miss on how well I get to see them. 

Afternoon:

We met our guide, Jack, this afternoon and headed for Shamian Island for some shopping.  Camellia was all smiles to be able to get out of the hotel for a while.

 

We did some shopping and bought a few things at some of the stores before finding the playground. It was good to watch her just play and be a kid for a while.  

 

 This island is a beautiful area of the city. It was captured by the British about 150 years ago, so there are a lot of European influences here in the architecture and layout of the island.

 

Many models and people who are getting married come to the island for their pictures. Scott Berens would have a field day here!

 

After we were done shopping we ate at the famous Lucy’s restaurant. The restaurant has all sorts of American food and is decorated to resemble a diner. I was able to get some onion rings and French fries. Luckily, the onion rings didn’t resemble noodles, so I didn’t have to share with Camellia tonight. J

 

 

 I can’t put into words how excited Camellia was to have her own pretty little authentic dress, but I believe this picture can:

 

Usually when we get back to the room, the first thing she does is go potty. This evening, the first thing she did was remove her clothes and chase me around looking for this dress. I put it on her and well, you can see how happy she was. I’ve found that since she’s been in an orphanage, she doesn’t know what to do when I give her an option to choose something. For instance, if I ask her if she likes the pink or the purple dress, she won’t respond, but if I choose one and give it to her she gets super excited. I asked my guide about this, and he said that he has noticed this from the children as well. They go so long without anything that having to choose between two things is foreign to them. They do much better if you just give them something.

Evening

Camellia is starting to understand English very quickly, and one word that is safe to say that Camellia understands is bath. She now loves getting a bath. At first, she didn’t like getting her hair wet, and sitting in the tub was foreign to her, but now she has so much fun at bath time!

Overall, the day ended well thanks to rereading some encouraging words from my wife. As Camellia gets more comfortable with me, she has begun to try and determine boundary lines. Having the right mindset is making all the difference for these challenges. Psalms 103:13 ESV "As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear Him."