Our International House of People: August 2010

Monday, August 30, 2010

Soccer

So it has been a month since my last post and in that time Lennah has started soccer. We gave up Karate and dance, well basically because I don't think either was high energy enough for Lennah. She has been asking about doing hockey and living in GA hockey is not an option to play, especially for a little girl (She got the idea for hockey since my dad was watching it in front of her one day). Anyway, we figured soccer might be a good fit. So she had her first practice almost two weeks ago and this past Saturday was her first game. Needless to say Lennah did not want to play at her first practice but last week she started getting into it. So thank goodness she got to play in her first game. Granted it is only a bunch of three year olds but they were so cute to watch. Her team, the Rockets, lost but hopefully this coming Saturday they will get a few more goals.

As for the adoption front. We did not realize what a different ball game adopting from the US is in comparison to international. Our agency never heard back from the social worker when she told them she had a family interested in the group so we are still waiting for a match. We are okay with that because we do have our trip to Disney planned in a few weeks and were worried that we did not plan on having a few new kids to take since we never thought the process would have been that fast. All we can say it is in God's hands for now.

We are also very thankful that we abandon our journey to Rwanda since we read that they are not accepting any new dossiers until all the Hague stuff is settled. I am not quite sure how that will slow down the people waiting but I now know 100% that we were never meant to be in Rwanda it just was a detour that took us to where we were supposed to be.

History of Ethiopia

Ethiopia is one of the oldest known cradles of civilization known to man. Christianity was brought to the Kingdom of Axum around the 4th century AD and later in the 7th century Islam was introduced. Foreign missionaries were introduced to the region around the 1630's. Because of these unwelcomed guest Ethiopia did not welcome foreign Christians and Europeans into their lands. Its isolationism may have saved the country from 19th century colonialism. In 1936 Italian facists entered the region and forced its emperor into isolation but was later returned when the British and the French defeated the Italians. Civil unrest would lead to the demise of the aging emperor and in 1974 a socialist sort of government was named. The country went through a period of red terror that was funded by the Soviets and Cuba. This lead to the implementation of a communist government being installed in the late 1970's, early 1980's. In 1989 the country went through a period of famine that also lead to a change in governments. Finally, in 1994 the country would declare its independence and later hold free elections.

History of Vietnam

For about two thousand years Vietnam was ruled by China, following this period it would become independent for the next almost thousand years. In the 1800's it would be colonized by the French. The early 20th century would bring about visions of an independent republic. In 1945 Ho Chi Minh declared Vietnam independent and renamed it the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. By 1947 a full-scale war would break out between the French and the Viet Minh (Ho CHi Minh's followers). China also began to aid the Viet Minh at this time due to its own communist revolution. July, 1954 the Geneva Accords would be sign paving the road to France leaving Vietnam; however, it would partition Vietnam into 2 independent states seperated by the 17th parallel. The South was helped by the United States, while the North would be dominated by the Viet Minh. By 1963 the South's government was very unstable. 1965 President Lyndon Johnson would send troops into Vietnam. The North would lead a massive attack in 1968 destroying much of the South. In 1969, Ho Chi Minh died but his forces remained in tact. By the early 1970's many Americans viewed the war as unwinnable and would prove unsuccessful at containing communism. January 1973 the Paris Peace Accords were signed ending the United States role in the war. In 1975 Saigon would fall to the North Vietnamese and in July of 1976 the two parts were reunified into the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. The war was disastrous for the Vietnamese people leaving an estimated 1 million to become boat people, 1 million imprisioned, and more than 100,000 killed. Today, Vietnam still has a communist form of government and although they are a developing nation many people remain extremely poor.

Monday, August 30, 2010

Soccer

Ho Chi Minh City

Addis Ababa

Hohhot City

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