The warmth of a home away from home

There is one home for a natural child, whereas there are two homes for an adopted child.

No matter what causes a child's separation from its biological parents and being placed in the arms of its adoptive parents, no matter whether the adoption is open or closed, the two homes with both sets of parents mostly hold a special place in a child's heart.

-- Abandoned but adopted

Born and abandoned in her birthplace, Jin Yingchun was adopted by the Michels from Quebec.

Sixteen-month-old Yingchun has now grown into 6-year-old Marie.

The Michels, a couple in their 50s, have invested all they have to raise their adopted daughter.

Francis, the mother, resigned from her job to become a stay-at-home mom, while Jasmin, the father, has been cutting his office hours to spend more time at home as a caring dad.

Although she now feels at home in the bilingual Canadian province, Marie has been coaxed into learning a third language -- Chinese.

"It's important for her," said Jasmin, who, together with his wife, wants his adopted daughter to remain connected to her roots.

The Michels have not only provided their adopted daughter with almost everything she needs, but have also kept almost everything that traces her roots back to where she was originally born.

Photos, big or small, framed or carefully tucked away in photo albums, are chronicles of Marie's childhood, from her adoption at the orphanage up to the family's recent preparation for hosting some Chinese visitors.

-- Lost but found

Although Jia Wei left her place of birth in China when she was four, the 11-year-old girl has found an adoptive home in Australia.

Wei has a mom who has resigned from her job to be a full-time mother, and the Chinese girl enjoys a home-away-from-home environment in Sydney, where she meets more Chinese than Australians.

Babetty, her adoptive mother, has never given Wei an English name.

"We want the child to know where her roots are and where she is from," the mother explained. "And we also want to keep her Chinese traits by encouraging her to learn the Chinese language and Chinese dances."

The parents have been preparing their daughter mentally, not only by telling her the truth about her adoption, but by treating her to a recent three-week tour of China as well.

"We need patience to bring up Jia Wei," said the mother. Babetty and her husband know clearly that it takes time for their daughter to understand and accept the racial and cultural differences between the Chinese daughter and her Australian parents.

-- Deformed but rectified

Feng was born with a congenital cleft palate and lip.

The boy's bad luck, however, stopped there. An American doctor offered him orthopedic surgery, and a Dutch banker adopted him, allowing him to enjoy a normal childhood.

Walter Heslenfeld, the adoptive father, described Feng's orthopedic surgery as a great success: It usually takes between five and six visits to the hospital to complete such a delicate operation in the Netherlands, whereas the American doctor did it all at one go in China.

Heslenfeld and his wife are now waiting for Feng to grow to the age of 10 before letting him undergo final cosmetic surgery. Thus, Feng can become completely normal-looking and feel a lot more comfortable about his appearance.

Feng is not the Heslenfelds' only adopted child.

The Dutch couple have also adopted a daughter before Feng.

To better raise their adopted children, the Heslenfelds are moving out of the bustling city of Amsterdam to settle down in quiet Nijmegen.

The couple have traded their full-time jobs for part-time ones so as to have more time with their adopted kids at home.

Heslenfeld has been a supportive father, trying to help Feng overcome the inferiority complex caused by his inborn deformity.

"You are now already looking the best to us," Heslenfeld cheers on his adopted son.

-- East or west, a home is best

Thanks to its 1992 adoption statute and its 2005 accession to The Hague Adoption Convention, China has so far seen upwards of 100,000 children adopted by families in foreign countries.

"Thanks to inter country adoptions, these Chinese children can now enjoy the same caring and loving that are found within a family, and they are enabled to envisage a bright future from their present secure and pleasant surroundings," said Chu Xiaoying, deputy director of the China Center of Adoption Affairs.

Donia Muller, chairwoman of the French Parents' Association of Adoption of Chinese Children, assured: "We will do our best to raise these adopted children from China, and we will cherish their links with China, which itself is a wealth to them."

Source:Xinhua