So I last left off that my husband and I were having communication issues .We had been home a few months and had focused all of our energy on our daughter’s attachment and feelings of security. My husband contracted Hep A from my daughter, spent time in the ICU and quickly was working six days a week again. We had no time to face the issues that were brewing. We had such little time together I did not want to spend it arguing.Any attempts we made to bring up issues were quickly heated and we got defensive. John used sarcasam as his weapon of choice. I used... more

[Continued from HERE.]

I believe that many of the other contradictions come from the very genteel nature of most Malawians, a nature that can be summed up in two words: "no problem."

Even if there is a huge problem, most Malawians will say "there is no problem, but…" They will then proceed to tell about the problem that isn’t supposed to be a problem, periodically insisting, "but there is no problem" throughout the... more

Over the Moon, written and illustrated by Karen Katz (one of my favorites) is the story of a couple anxiously awaiting the arrival of their new baby. Everyone gets in on the anticipation: Grandma, the fruit seller, and the little girl from next-door all ask when the baby is coming. "Soon," the parents answer, and then they get the call! The baby has been born in a far-away land, full of flowers and palm... more

[Continued from HERE.]

There is plenty of irony in the central complaint that Madonna used her influence to expedite the process and waive requirements. I can attest to the fact that “rule bending” is an art form in Malawi. It permeates just about every fiber of life on some level or another, INCLUDING adoption prior to the M Fray. “Rule bending” can be required to get the proper medical... more

[Continued from HERE.]

Let’s take a look at the main issues that are being raised by the Human Rights Consultative Committee (HRCC), a coalition of sixty-seven human rights non- governmental organizations (NGOs) surrounding the M Fray. The following is a collection of quotes given mainly by the chairman of the HRCC:

I was first introduced to the idea that a child could have a complex interwoven group of disorders versus just one definable disorder about five years ago when we did a neurofeedback intensive with a therapist in Utah. On the first day there, we conducted a quantitative EEG (QEEG) to measure LuLu’s brainwaves and do a statistical analysis on the electrical activity in various parts of her brain. As the therapist was downloading and reviewing this data to send to the neurologist for analysis, he couldn’t help but take a peek. He declared (and... more

[Continued from HERE.]

From Idi Amin to apartheid to the Rwandan genocide to Robert Mugabe to female genital mutilation to the Janjaweed in Darfur, significant and disturbing human rights abuses are, to some, nearly synonymous with modern Africa. Indeed, there are many human rights abuses great and small plaguing the continent (and yes, the entire world, U.S. of A. included.)

Malawi, though never... more

I’m thankful school is back in session. Now before you say “That’s easy for you to say if you’re not a teacher.” I need to remind you that in fact I am LuLu’s one and only teacher at Ladybug Elementary. And I have to say that despite all my whining and complaining about having to “go to school” today, I’m glad I did.

And glad that LuLu is back on a schedule and out of the funk that came to a head on Saturday with the Christmas decorations. Once I was... more

The Vatican has come out with a statement about human trafficking that got some press recently.

"It's worse than the slavery of those whose slaves who were taken from Africa and brought to other countries," said Cardinal Renato Martino, former longtime Vatican envoy to the United Nations and current head of the Holy See's office concerned with migrant and itinerant peoples.

At a news conference to present Pope Benedict XVI's annual... more

Two weeks ago we were hemmed in by “the great Seattle flood of 2006.” Today our Thanksgiving vacation was extended by snow.

Midwesterners: Don’t laugh too hard, but in the Pacific Northwest, when one snowflake falls from the sky, the entire west side of Washington State shuts down. In the Seattle area, we get approximately four inches of snow per year, and it usually falls all in one day. Today is that day.

In Seattle, we don’t believe in snowplows. We don’t own snow shovels. We don’t own snow blowers. Most of us don’t... more