Info and Artifacts

I recently met with an adoptive mom and her child who shared with me some books about the child’s adoption. The first was a life book, professionally done and bound, that the mother had made and another was from the orphanage itself. The orphanage had compiled a very nicely done book with things in it like, the national anthem written out, the child’s name written in the native tongue, the child’s likes and dislikes, information about the child’s birth city, a map, etc. There were also pictures of the outside of the orphanage, the staff, the Ayahs holding the baby, the baby’s playmates, and the city. I am sure there were many other things in this thick booklet that I am forgetting but I thought it was such a sweet gesture of the orphanage to take this kind of thought and give one of these personalized books to each child. It would be wonderful if each orphanage would be able to hire someone to make these type of books, for every child to be adopted, that they could have and cherish as they grow.
As I was looking at some African adoption programs on a site that I had found, I saw where one of the programs offered something special to the adoptive parents and child. For $100, the agency would send home some artifacts from the child’s native country including: national clothing, jewelry, books, drums, baskets, dolls, cloth, table cloth, music, etc. While most families now travel to India to receive their child there may still be a few families who can use escorts. While this sort of service (sending artifacts home with the child) would be especially fun and priceless if you couldn’t travel, it would also be nice to have if you did travel. Sometimes when you go to get your child there just isn’t enough time to shop and get all those things you wish you could have or you may not be able to find the items that you were looking for. Plus you never know how your child may like shopping while they are in tow. Sometimes people ask other traveling families to pick things up for them, but I think this would be a great service for Indian adoption agencies to consider offering.