With all of my emotional posts, I feel the need to tell a little bit about where we are in the process. So, if you're not interested in adoption, this could quickly get confusing or boring. (I hope it won't be that for those who are interested, but let's hold our judgement til the end).
I have been writing about our court experiences, but not blogging about them -1) because I didn't want to put our case in jeopardy in any way (like our judge would read this?) and 2) because I was so emotional that they weren't always the kind of things one should post to the world. So now I will try to put the story together a little more objectively, which is always easier to do when it has worked out in your favor!
I think most of you know our court case was scheduled for last Thursday. Steve and I both had to be there, and it is easily the most nerve- wracking part of adopting. We had already invested not only in the adoption process and Uganda, but also deeply with Fort. In Uganda, Americans are not allowed to adopt without living in country and fostering the child for 3 years. Obviously, with Steve's job and our kids- this was not an option. In addition, there is what used to be considered a loophole, but is now becoming acceptable to the courts: the process of legal guardianship. We become the child's legal guardian, obtain a US visa for him, and finalize the adoption in the US as a domestic adoption. So that's why we were at court.
Cultural differences can be hard to see and understand. In the case of the court system, nothing is like the States. It is common that a judge will reschedule his case on the day of, which can cause havoc with the carefully orchestrated time off from work and flight plans. This was our greatest fear. Well, that and that the judge would say flat out NO. Turns out, we didn't have to worry about rescheduling.
We barely got started when the judge asked our lawyer where were the people who signed affidavits regarding the first year our son was found, before coming to Kaja Nafasi where he lives now. The judge wished to cross examine the probation officer and the woman who is running the government home where Fortunate was first living. So he dismissed us until we could come back with them! Jurjanne (the Initiator/Director of Kaja Nafasi) took the social worker and also our lawyer to go and find those people. I can't figure out if this truly came out of the blue, or if our lawyer was unprepared. The judge seemed to chastise him for not having the people ready. Steve and I were totally shocked, and obviously worried. Steve had one more business day (Friday) before flying back 20+ hours to Ohio.
Steve and I took Fort to a coffee shop (he is learning all about the games on my iPad) for a few hours, until they came back from their search. Both people were available for the next morning, and the lawyer was able to book a time with the judge for 9:30am.
Here was the kicker- the woman from the government home was quite hesitant about international adoption and was very scared that her name will be involved in an illegal case. So, many promises were made to her to get her there, and reassure her that everything was above board and she was not being asked to tell anything but what she knew of Fort last year. And....the probation officer is a drunk who can't remember the children, even though he has met Fort several times. He stayed overnight with the lawyer so we didn't "lose" him. Great.
And Steve and I were completely relegated to the back until it is the portion of the case to determine if we are suitable guardians. The first part (of whether he is an orphan) was out of our hands- and seemingly in the hands of incompetents. It was maddening and also mystifying that all of this was just run of the mill. That afternoon was a dark day, the day of the rain.
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