In the past I used to be invited to share the joy of friends in the announcement of a pregnancy or a birth. I'd be sent ultrasound scans or pictures of the ruddy new arrival as the case may be. My delight for the new parents was certainly there but it could never be unqualified. You'd always wonder "Why not me (us)?" and it would inevitably be a time for sad reflection on how things could - or with "justice" should - have been. So I hope those readers who have experienced the pain of childlessness or who are waiting to adopt can indulge me as I write of this, my time for celebration. For this evening's celebration comes at the end of a long and bitter path which began with failed IVF attempts in my first marriage back in 1991/1992. It plummeted to the depths of despair with the suicide of my first wife Esther in 1999. And most recently it has seen a (quite needlessly) long 14 month wait for confirmation of an adoption process here in Nepal. But the celebration stems from the news that the Nepalese international adoption committee has approved our application for Alisha to become our daughter and now all we await is the signature of the secretary to the committee, Mr Neupane. And for the record for waiting parents that's case number 2060 with the committee having worked through (to my pleasant surprise) at lightning speed to case number 2065.
For the last couple of weeks we've had an appeal in place for the rescue of children and teenage girls who are trapped in the Indian circuses (see right). So far we have raised just £230 towards the £15,842 that we predicted would be needed to rescue 150 children from six circuses over the period January-June 2008 (a "planning assumption"). This morning I heard that the first circus on our list for January has no less than 200 trafficked and imprisoned girls so heaven knows where we are going to find the funds to raid that circus in January and to manage them post release. But the planning goes on regardless and the field team will be deployed next week to start collecting data and parents' statements/release requests. However I am sure that we will get a result and that 2008 will be for me a great year both personally and professionally.
