A Whirlwind

The last three weeks have been a whirlwind of emotions.

Mom came. Elation and relief. We left for our road trip to visit the rice terraces. Enthusiastic, then disappointment, then gratitude. More on that later. We returned to Manila, full of hope, and couldn't wait to pick up our paperwork that had been promised before we left for our trip. Jitters set in. Monday rolled around. And things didn't happen the way they were supposed to, they way we had been told they would. And we didn't get the papers they said we'd get.

Mom and I spent NINE HOURS waiting in dingy, non air-conditioned office buildings, going without lunch, being passed from office to office and from person to person and after all of that, and through lots of tears and many headaches, we didn't accomplish a thing. I pretty much had a meltdown by the end of the day and poor mom saw me at my finest. At the last moment before closing time, we were told to have faith, to HOPE that by Thursday, we could get the official paperwork (namely birth certificates) we needed to proceed to the next stage - the passport.

In the midst of all this drama, I was going back and forth with our attorneys over original paperwork that we would need to have returned and that was instead "sealed" and no longer available. This brought on a whole new set of complications.

I know this is not clear, but let's just say that there are no words for the lack of competency that we encountered. No words for the frustration and heartbreak and possibility of not being able to get home this summer. It was a terrible, terrible, terrible day.

Now, I know it sounds dramatic. And I know there are worse problems. Much worse. But until you live in a developing country and experience the bureaucracy that is part of it, you cannot fully comprehend it. No lie, it's enough to stamp the soul right out of you.

But, enough depressing stuff.

Thursday came. Cory and I left work early to take the MRT to the office we needed to frequent for the third time. And the official birth certificates we printed. Four copies. As I had requested. In a matter of ten minutes. It didn't make sense, but there was no point in trying to figure it out. The attorneys came through with our needed documents. Everything came together the way that it should have before the trip, the way we had been told it would. Elation and relief.

Friday came and mom photocopied all the documents we needed in order to be over-prepared for our appointment at the Department of Foreign Affairs for Aiston's Filipino passport. We were ready.

And then Saturday came. And we got to our appointment early. And we were told that we would have to speak to the director because of the unusual case of adoption. And without reviewing our paperwork, the director said, "You will need to go to the Department of Immigration to prove that your son is a Filipino citizen." Hearts sank. Defiance set in. I told him that no, we would not go there and that I had the proper documentation to support our case. He relented and didn't even ask to see most of the paperwork we had brought. After 2.5 hours, and an emotional meltdown from Ace, we had secured his passport and returned home.

Ace's passport will be delivered next week. We'll then have one final step in this mess that is the "process" - obtaining a tourist visa from the U.S. Embassy. But, that cannot be done until we have his passport number. So wait just a little bit longer we shall.

Here's to HOPING that by next week, appointment at the Embassy confirmed, we'll be ready to book flights for summer travel HOME!

* Note: Momma was INSTRUMENTAL in keeping me (and I would venture to say Cory, too) sane over the past three weeks. Momma could tell we were in no state to continue this hellish journey and her support was invaluable. She was there for all of it - the good, the bad and the really ugly. We are beyond grateful to know she is our constant. Thank you, momma.