It was here.
The hiccups and roadblocks had been relatively few. It was a testament to the number of people helping us along the way. So much work going on behind the scenes. When they had heard that "one of their own" was "coming home", the seemed to work that much harder, although I never thought that was possible.
As I mentioned in a previous post, Emma is an American now, starting her way into adulthood. Her future is wide open, like all of us, and she has many chapters ahead of her, like we all (hopefully) do.
The sense of family runs deep in Bengbu, and custom and culture reinforces "nature" as much as "nuture".
I am warmed by this sense of inner warmth. The Chinese people that Emma does not know, are working for her to "come home". They don't even really know her, and only know me. They know of my love for Bengbu, and my love for China. When I tell them that Emma is coming, a different tone is in their voices.
All too typically in the world of today, there is a sense of mistrust in others. There is fear and suspicion. There are borders that must be defended, loved ones we must keep safe, and attackers that must be kept out.
I find it so interesting in the behavior of humans that they can so easily react in a certain way towards others. What is it about Emma being born in Bengbu that causes people to behave so welcoming? Is it the connection that they feel they have with her? Is it the fact that they believe she will share their same behaviors, likes and dislikes? Is it because she is made of the similar genetic material, and is somehow part of the good, the bad, the joy, the sadness, the ugly, and the beauty of Bengbu? What makes people lower their guard to this completely strange Indiana girl, and welcome her into their Inner Sanctum? She has not lived in their pain, or their day to day hardships. She has not contributed to their town or village.
What is it?
I think this is for Emma to find out, and for me to have the distinct honor to observe.
As we mustered after checkout of our hotel in the darkness of pre-dawn, Emma and her mother had no idea how many people were preparing for her visit. Our volunteer in Bengbu was ready and waiting for her. The orphanage staff was delighted to hear that she was on her way. I had said to them, "I don't know how much she will want to do, she may be very tired from her trip.". They had replied, "Don't worry. She'll be fine. She's a Bengbu woman, after all.".
Not knowing the strength of either a Bengbu woman, or an Indiana woman, I saw that both Emma and her mother looked locked and loaded for the day ahead, and so we pushed our throttles upward, and with a roar of engines, in the form of rattling wheels of our luggage along the streets of Shanghai, we made our way to our subway stop, on our way to HongQiao railway station.
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