영어로 써본 "마기 이야기"..수정본

좀 부끄럽네요.

말도 안되는 영어글을 올려놓고 청랑목사님이 그를 수정하느라 고생하셨습니다.

그것을 바탕으로 다시 수정본을 올립니다.

 

목사님 감사합니다.

 

"They are definitely my children"

 

 

Suppose there is a couple who just married.

 

What's their dream?  Probably they want to have baby and make a happy family. Nowadays some couples don't want to have babies yet, but that would be an exception, I hope.
Now I want to introduce you one special couple: Marie and Bryan.

When Marie and Bryan married more than 20 years ago, they had the same hope. But they couldn’t have their own baby -     that made them different from others.
Bryan got a serious motorcycle accident,  that made him a wheelchair user for his disability.
“Did he get an injury before you married?” I asked. “3 years ago” she replied. I couldn’t keep asking.  It seemed unnecessary.

 

Anyway they decided to adopt children.

 

They asked one agency called "The Children's Aid" an information about a Canadian baby for adoption.
The answer was uncertain.
They didn’t have any baby for adoption and weren't sure when will be come an opportunity.
They said “you should wait more than 5 years without a promise”.
It seemed too long to wait for it.

 

They found a couple who had adopted a baby girl from South Korea; John and Norma Kempers, their neighbors.
One day Margie visited them, and asked “Is it possible to adopt a child from other country?” They gave her their answers.
“Why didn’t The Children’s Aid let us know, you can check the other country” she wondered.

When I have a talk with Margie, I felt that the Canadian Government don’t let the people adopt children easily and make sure solid preparedness for any adoption.
Also they are checking the candidates (would-be adopters) in many ways.

So they wanted and decided to adopt a child from Korea.

 

She had to visit a regional social worker many times. Finally “The Children’s Aid" wanted to know their situation.

 

“They visited us every weekend during 8 weeks. They interviewed my husband and then me separately. Sometimes they interviewed us together.” She continued “such as.... What about our childhood.....   Relationship with our parents.....   Knowledge of child care.... How we got together.... and financial situation, etc...”
After all, they wanted to know they are the right couple to raise children. At last the agent said “O.K.”.

 

They processed for adoption. It had to go through the Korea embassy in Ottawa. She recollected when she got any information from the social worker, it took so long. It went to Walkerton-Ottawa-Korea and back to the same ways. Every time the social worker made sure with this kind of questions: “do you change your mind?” or “do you want a child still?”

 

She waited about one year and then she received good news in November 1982 that they had a baby boy chosen for them. She saw his picture... His Korean name was Sun-Ho Uh.

 

Of course the baby didn’t come to Canada without difficulty. She expected to meet him before X-mas. But there was no response for a while. Sun-Ho came to Canada on April of 1983.

 

The baby came accompanied by an attendant who took care of the baby's needs (feeding, diaper change etc...) on the long flight. Margie went to Seattle through Toronto to Texas with her husband’s sister Gladys Teeple.

 

She remembered that travel was stressful and tense. When they arrived at Seattle airport, they learned that airplane which Christopher (Sun Ho) was to arrive was delayed, by at least an hour. They sat and waited.

 

After meeting her handsome baby, they had another troubles.

The ticket officer at the gate told them they had one-way tickets so they could not get into the airplane to return to Toronto, Canada.

How embarrassed they were, holding their new baby in their arms but in the strange place.

She called Port Elgin travel agency where they bought the tickets and was able to resolve the problem.

 

I cannot but think that was much harder than a normal 9 month-pregnancy.

 

After 3 years they applied for a second baby from Korea. Her mother wanted a granddaughter. But that did not depend on her choice. So Margie told her mother. Jeremy (Young Gil Moon) arrived Dec. 1987.

 

They looked different even when they were babies. In Jeremy's case Margie went to the baby Jeremy with her sister Edna. They flew to New York. He was 10 months old.

There were many babies waiting for the adopters - their new parents.

Someone who was charging the situation called the names of children and their appointed new parents, the people gathered there were anxious to meet their babies.
Margie remembered when she met Jeremy first time at the airport. He was such a cute boy and his center hair was like all going to sky.

 

She have two boys by those proceeding.

 

When I asked whether she see any difference between her family and other average family, She answered: “Mindy, what do you think how do children grow? From here!!(She pointed her heart) It’s same.” She made her point emphatically.  “I didn’t give a birth but they are my children, I and my husband are their parents.”

I totally agree with her. There is the moment for giving a birth but upbringing is life-long job.
Love should grow up everyday.

 

“You must’ve had hard time, didn’t you?   Was Bryan able to work?” I asked.

She explained he worked at their farm with a special tractor. From a very early age the boys helped their dad. They worked with him in his shop. Bryan taught them to run tractors and machinery safely. They also assisted him with his day to day life like pushing wheelchair.

 

Bryan got a gardening job. But because his leg was growing weak, he couldn’t continue the job after all. She smiled and said,  “so I had to work and still on.”

 

Bryan receives disability allowance.  “We are not rich but we try our best for make many chances for them learned” she added.

 

Their oldest son, Christopher will be 24 years old this year. During the college years he got a job that he wishes to have. He lives with his girl friend. He called Margie yesterday  “there is a construction in my apartment, I couldn’t sleep”. He complained to his mother.

 

Margie said their personalities are unlike. Christopher is like her.   He is quick to anger, moody. He likes to play out every detail, if things don’t go as he thought they should. Jeremy is unaffected boy like his father, very laid back, calmer, easy going.... Both boys are quite musical. They both play the guitar.

“Do you have any information about their parents or background?” I asked.

“I learned Christopher’s mother was 40 years old when she was 7 month pregnancy. At that time her husband ran away from home.” Margie told me she might have her name too.
But there is not much in the report about Jeremy. He was in the basket at somebody’s front door. There was his name and birth dates with  “wish to adopt” note.

 

When I heard it I felt more compassion for Jeremy than Christopher.

 

She said  “I am sure that it must have been a hard decision for adoption. I am so thankful to both of these women, as they allowed me to being a mom. Something that would not happened without their sacrifice. I believe it is God’s will that they came to me”

 

When I was looking at her, I couldn’t’t imagine her without her children.

 

The oldest son couldn’t drink milk except goat milk. 2nd son had problem of bed-wetting for a long time.

Probably those things were not so burdensome for they had much joy with their children. We know that if we get over hardship joy will come.

 

One day Margie heard that Koreans sleep on floor instead of in the bed. She decided  “I’ll sleep on floor with my baby.” But he was sleeping well in the bed the first night. She didn’t have to sleep on floor. I explained Koreans take sleeps on a heated floor with blankets.

"I have happy days and sad days with my children. How about you? My boys are good and lovely. I am proud of them. Bryan and I have never regretted the decision we made to adopt. We felt truly blessed.”  She believes firmly.

"Are your boys wanted to visit South Korea?" I asked. "I think they will go and visit Korea someday but I didn’t’t hear they want to see their mother” she answered.

Even before their adoption they didn’t know about Korea. Now they have friends, Korean family who came over business trip at Port Elgin. And she works for us at my store. I hope our connection get better.  

 

 I want to say something to her.

“Margie, a part of Korean culture is based on the strong blood kinship. They usually do not accept other family’s blood in their family roots. So we have not much practicing adoption. That’s why many kids are coming out for adoption in foreign country. I appreciate you for being Korean kid’s parents.”

 

“Oh” I asked “how much did you pay?” “I hate to say that I paid for my children…” she started “I paid (per child) 3-4000 dollars, I think that the money used for my child and assistant’s flight fee and so…”

 

I often heard about “foreign adoption” that is the way our Korean government makes money from adoption and that makes her 1st country in the foreign country adoption.   We Koreans usually have felt shame and guilty consciences.”

But I don’t know how much make money from that. Every year we have about 2,000 kids for that. That seems not much money. But thinking that way   is an insult the adopted children and their parents. We have to try reducing orphans. After that we should have a new vision about the interior country adoption.

But we couldn’t say our foreign country adoption is a shame and disgrace. They have new lives in the new homes.
.

 

 

 

We can see Bryan and two sons. Community newspaper

had interested in Margie’s family story.

 

 

 

Margie… She is the mother of two sons who has

beautiful light blue eyes.