It seems that we have been in a time warp and now, painfully, we have been shaken back into reality. We came to the point where "goodbye" gave us no choice and our tears could not be held back. Goodbye is always so difficult and always seems harsh in the moment. Yet, our tears and aching hearts are eager to give way to the anticipation of what is yet to come ... the moment we have spent the last eight months preparing for. In less than 18 hours, we will take the hands of two little boys to join with ours and everything we know will instantly become smaller and we will begin to learn and experience "life" all over again.
China is an amazing place ... full of history, culture and tradition ... and people, ... beautiful people.
We cannot and will not easily forget this place or these people. God has ordained all that has been and all that will be. We are so grateful and humbled to be a part of His Plan.
We have taken hundreds of photos ... but here are some to share as we finished up our time in Wuxi.
The family and extended family makes it a priority to spend time together ... on a regular basis.
Entering the visiting area for Taihu Lake in Wuxi.
There are many Buddhist temples and monuments in various areas; there are also some Taoist temples, as well.
Regardless, I think the architecture is stunning!!
Making the dumplings ... LOTS of dumplings!
Having fun at the local "square". There were many activities going on including four sections of different "Wu" dancing being conducted.
Brynn makes friends wherever she goes!
Molly gave the "dancing" a try ...
Molly's foster grandma and many of her neighbors 'farm' their own vegetables. The photo below shows the harvested soybeans.
They also grow potatoes and black sesame!!
This man showed us what the sesame looks like before it is harvested. There are little pods on the stalks; the pods are filled with the seeds.
They wash, peel and cut the vegetables ...
... and prepare the stove by making a fire.
They also have a small gas stove where they have two woks for cooking as well.
The family members all work together to prepare the meals.
It is a good time to converse with one another.
Eating together is also very important to them.
It is a very socially significant and family-bonding event.
Here we have a snail-eating competition .... no, really ... the Prendergasts were not brave enough to eat snails (or the eel) so these two men picked up the slack for us and ate the most snails.
This is Jie ... she and Molly were best friends when Molly lived in China.
The two of them together was so sweet and, yet, so painful ... Jie cried several times knowing that Molly was going to be leaving.
That, of course, caused a chain-reaction and at the end ... all of us were crying.
WE love these people!!
WE hope to see them again ... one day soon!!
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