The best word to describe the six of us right now is GIDDY.
I had promised him I’d “call China.” He had asked me to call him too but then he scrolled through the contacts on my phone, shrugged his shoulders, and said: “I don’t know. Bù zhīdào,” communicating very clearly that he knew I didn’t have his number. I shrugged my shoulders too and told him I’d try.
And, tonight, we did!
In the lobby of his orphanage, three little boys gathered around the orphanage director’s phone. For about 15 minutes, we all laughed and shouted each other’s names, smiled so big our cheeks hurt (note my huge smile to the left), and said “Wǒ ài nǐ!”
He lost his front tooth. We had so hoped that wiggly tooth would fall out here. Apparently, he lost it on Friday, the day after he returned to China. It didn’t seem loose enough for that. I wonder if they pulled it regardless.
They all were happy. They were jumping up and down with excitement and playfully pushing each other out of the way to get closer to the little screen. We saw other staff in the background smiling, enjoying watching the boys enjoy this moment.
It was so good to see them.
They are good. They are all good.