The advent of email has meant very little news is exchanged the old fashioned way, via a letter delivered by the postman. I had almost forgotten the feeling of joy, anticipation, and mystery associated with waiting for and then finding a personal note in my mailbox. It all came back last week when I received a letter from my daughter’s former foster family in China.
We adopted our daughter nearly four years ago and have had the pleasure of visiting her foster family, the Yus, who live in Dang Shang Village, deep in the heart of JiangXi Province. Since our most recent visit last year, I have been sending the family small packages. Unsure of the Chinese postal service, I included in my last parcel a self-addressed stamped envelope hoping they would confirm receipt of my correspondence.
The Yu family, while rich in love, is very poor by material standards. They live in a three-room brick house with an earthen floor and two barred windows absent any panes. The main room has only a rustic table and two benches, and while they have electricity – in the form of one lone light bulb hanging from the middle of the ceiling – there is no plumbing.
So I was ecstatic when I opened my mail box last week and found my envelope. I ripped it open to find a letter – not surprisingly – written in Chinese. It sat on my table until my friend, Souhon, was able to translate it. Here’s some of what it said:
“…Because we are uneducated (literally: we have a low level of education because we did not have that many years in school), we don’t know any foreign languages and we don’t know your surname or how to address you. Please forgive us.
We live in the [relatively] poor countryside. When you came, we didn’t have much to entertain you with. Sorry for this.
We hope you can come back this year.
Warm regards [literally: We bow to you],
The Yu Family”
Souhon told me that the letter was beautifully written so I think perhaps – given their level of education – they asked someone to help. In today’s difficult economic times, it’s so nice to think of this family. They have so little in terms of material possessions and yet they plenty of love to share with others.
The director of the local orphanage told us last year, “Mrs. Yu is a kind woman. She always has enough love for another [foster] child in her home. These are good people.” How fortunate that our daughter was able to spend the first 8 months of her life with Mrs. Yu. I can always rest assured that while Elisa did not have Baby Einstein or any of the other gimmicks we convince ourselves babies must have these days, she had the only thing she really needed while awaiting her new parents, love.
Email is great, but it’s not the same as a Letter.