Miracle At Guangzhou

By G. E. Shuman

“An invisible red thread connects those who are destined to meet, regardless of time, place or circumstance. The thread may stretch or tangle, but it will never break.” -- An ancient Chinese belief.

It is difficult, if not impossible, for some things… some feelings, to be explained by a person who has experienced those things or feelings, to someone who simply has not. You cannot effectively describe a sunset to a blind man, or the music of a symphony to a deaf person. I think it is likely the same case with the personal experience of a miracle, or at least of certain miracles. If you are the one experiencing it, you simply know it, and are in awe of the power of it all. You are at once thankful to God, and full to the brim with gratitude and wonder. If you are not ‘inside’ the experience of a miracle, or are one who does not believe in miracles, no amount of words of explanation can ever convince you or affect you.

To me, the arrival of a baby into a family is a miracle. Just think about it. For many months a couple is quite aware that the baby is coming, but they really don’t know that little person at all. After all, they have never actually met. Planning, waiting, and more planning happen during this time, but all of it in anticipation of the arrival of one tiny stranger. I believe that life itself is a huge miracle. I believe that the transformation of the tiny stranger into a simply irreplaceable, permanent family member, which either parent would sacrifice their own life for, may be a bigger miracle yet. This miracle, at least in my own experience, happens about one half of a millisecond after that baby is placed into the parents arms.

Oh. I’m sorry. I’ve probably given you the impression here that I’ve been writing about the birth of a baby. Well, that is one way for a child to enter the life of a family. But it is not the only way. As I write these words, and likely, as you read them, my daughter Chrissy and her husband Adam are in Guangzhou China, and right smack in the middle of their own, personal, family miracle. They are, at this very moment, getting to know their new daughter, MY new granddaughter, Sofia. And yes, it is a miracle. If you have never experienced the blessings of adoption you may not understand. As the father of two wonderful adopted children, I do. I know all about that invisible red thread, which led my wonderful daughter and her loving husband, at great sacrifice, to journey to the other side of the world, to find this little one whom they were destined to meet. But you may not believe in such things at all. In fact, if you wanted, you could even try to tell Chrissy and Adam that Sofi’s entrance into their lives was not a miracle, or not something that was ‘meant to be.’ Just don’t plan on getting very far with that.

I might suggest, that, if you happen to be a couple even contemplating the idea of adoption, there may be a very good reason for that contemplation. A member of your family might be waiting to meet you, right now.