46A. I find my seat next to Uncle John and Aunt Patty. From back here, I can still hear my new sister, who is standing up in the basket in seat 1, wailing. From there, everyone in this massive 747 can both see and hear her, and will for the next 18 hours home.

* * *

I have been told that the trip over to China will take about 18 hours, almost a full day of sitting on a plane. We are flying over the Pacific Ocean and stopping in Tokyo for a layover of several hours. Amazingly, sleep found my way eventually and I was out for most of the flight. I don’t remember anything after boarding the plane, and soon enough, we had landed in Changsha.

To say that Jade’s orphanage was off the beaten path would be an understatement. It was several hours away from our city hotel. Our bus rattled down narrow roads past ricefield after ricefield. It was a large building that appeared very well-kept. In front of the entrance, 12 stone statues, about three feet in height, of the Chinese zodiacs had been masterfully made. I scurried over to the rabbit, the zodiac for 1999, and proudly stood there while my mom took my picture.

The orphanage was rectangular, surrounding a central courtyard where the older children were playing on a slide. We were directed to one room, presumably Jade’s old bedroom but no one knew for sure. Six cribs were squeezed into this small room and the nannies told us that two girls were assigned to each crib. There were no windows in the bedroom, making it almost impossible not to be claustrophobic.

By Chinese social convention, we were obligated to give gifts to the officials who ran the orphanage. I never really understood this part, as all the parents had already brought clothing and other supplies for the orphanage. The entire meeting was very strict, formal, and stiff. Many of the officials stood in the corner and peered at each one of us individually. It was as if these people were trying to intimidate us into turning around and flying home.

Our travel guide had given us a whole list of taboos for the occasion. We were taken back outside for one last glimpse of the orphanage and then told to leave. Everything about that visit demonstrated the effort to conceal the massive problems the “One-Child Policy” had created. The nurses’ unwillingness to show us other parts of the orphanage, the restriction on cameras, and our hurried departure, all showed their suspicion and precautions around Americans.

While traveling along a street downtown, my 5-year-old mind did not comprehend what I was seeing. Signs of poverty were literally everywhere. Beaten down shacks for housing, poor sanitation, and a large amount of homeless people were all present in this area. The smell of waste and sewage reeked and visibility was limited due to the thick layers of smog.

“Why is that man crawling on the ground like that?” I asked my mom.

“He is crippled, which means that his bones and muscles do not function properly and he cannot walk. It is very common for people in China who cannot afford medical care.” she replied. That is when I truly understood that Jade was actually really fortunate to have been adopted into our family. She will be able to escape this hardship and be offered many opportunities in America.

And now I realize how deep Jade’s heritage is and how complicated her journey had been. She was abandoned at only four days old and left to fend for herself among thousands of others who have faced a similar misfortune. Our goal was to rescue one girl and bring her home to enhance our family, but as I sit here staring at my sister screaming from across the plane, I can’t help but think: We’re in for a wild ride!