Reflections On Court

As one of the first AWAA families to attend court, many have asked about my experience and the experience of the other familiy I traveled with, the Johnsons. Ethiopian Court seems a big mystery to adoptive families because few have attended. With the new Ethiopian ruling requiring court travel, this is about to change. All families will attend court.
Hopefully, this will shed some light on what families can expect. Disclaimer: One thing I have learned in this adoption process is that change is guaranteed. AMEN! I'll share my experience, but it might not take the mystery out of court. Thankfully, the Ancient of Days is always ruling in the heavenlies.

My court date was scheduled for Monday, May 31st, 2010. No specific time. "Sometime in the morning," I was told. T, my AWAA guide and now friend, shared, "We will wait at the Guest House for a phone call around 9:30, and if they are ready, we will head to the court building." I was given the option to walk or drive to court. Knowing it was a short distance from the Guest House, I chose to walk. For me it was a great choice. I had so much nervous energy that the walk was needed to clear my thoughts and burn off the nervousness. After about 5 minutes, T and I entered the court building. The elevator was out of use so we hiked up three flights of stairs (or was it 2?). There were many Ethiopians waiting in a sitting room, and a line zigzaged through the hallway. T found the representative from the orphange, Kingdom Vision, where Abenezer was originally placed. I thought we were in for a long, hour-or-more wait based on the number of people waiting. After about 20 minutes, we were called past all of the people into a small room. The judge was ready for us.
She sat behind a desk at one end of the office. Chairs lined the 2 other walls of the office. I sat near the judge. Abenezer's biological father sat next to me. T and the Kingdom Vision representative were also in the room. The judge didn't have a gavel or wear a robe. She was dressed in a head covering, skirt, and shirt. I wore slacks, a blouse, cotton jacket and flats.
The judge spoke in amharic and english. She asked Abenezer's biological father several questions. Nothing was translated. She then switched to english and asked me a series of questions.
"Why are you adopting? Why did you chose Ethiopia? Do you plan on having other children? How have you prepared yourself for transracial adoption? Have you had training on transracial adoption?" I tried to be as straight forward and brief with my answers, so as not to give the judge any reason to question me further. After the questions, she said everything was in place and now we would wait. The four of us stood and walked out of the court room and into the crowded waiting room, thankful it was over. Abenezer's biological father was willing to talk, so we headed downstairs to a "cafe" in the building's parking lot. I'll share about this incredible meeting in another post.
I didn't know until later that Duni and the AWAA court attorney would still meet with the judge to finalize the hearing. Because Keith was not present, the Power of Attorney was still needed. This will be different for all families traveling under the new ruling. Around 11:45 the same morning, we were driving to do a little shopping and then heading to Kid's Care. T's phone rang as it does about a thousand times a day. He hung up and turned around with a smile. "You passed court!" Sara Johnson screamed. I could barely whisper audibly, "Thank you, Lord, for this gift." My heart was doing back flips and singing the Hallelujah chorus as I smiled through the tears. Once again, God left me speechless.
The LORD has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy. Psalm 126:3