Rachel with Ann Logan (left) and grandma in the family kitchen in Oxfordshire, England.

 

Like anywhere else in the world, British couples who find they are unable to have children look to adoption as a solution. But for the Logans, of Oxfordshire, who have two already grownup sons and nobody else to care for, adopting a foreign baby was "something the devout Christians wanted to do with all of their hearts".

 

Ann Logan, now 54, said it all started one day in 1996. "I was sitting with my husband in the garden when the idea popped up," she said.

 

At the time, the family had no country-of-origin requirements for their adoptee, but rather, were more concerned about making sure they found one with special needs. At the time, international adoption in Britain was still at its early stages. Staff from Parent and Children Together (PACT), an adoption agency in Oxfordshire, suggested they adopt a Chinese baby.

 

The couple's sons, both in their 20s, reacted in the way that would be expected of biological offspring. The youngest, who was the baby in the family, had trouble grappling with the idea there would be another "baby" in his stead. "He spent about an hour on the phone, trying to talk me out of it," recalled Ann.

 

But the couple went forward with the two-and-a-half-year adoption process. It began with the medical report, then proceeded to home visits and assessments from social workers. Then came the matching and finally, the meeting.

 

According to regulations, applicants must update police records and get health checks to file with the Beijing-based China Center for Adoption Affairs (CCAA) every six months. To obtain police records, one has to not only pay 10 pounds (about $20 now) each time but also must wait three months.

 

"Before he retired, he has always placed the photo of Rachel (the baby whom the couple wanted to adopt) on his desk," the grateful mother said.

 

In 1998, the couple finally received a letter from China's Ministry of Health with a photo of little Yang Zhen -- now Rachel -- who was less than 1 year old.

 

"When I saw the photo, I couldn't hold back my tears. It was my mom who read out the part in English for me and drove me back," Ann said.

 

But the form that contained the baby's health details was written in Chinese. In her eagerness to know all about it, Ann found a Chinese restaurant, ordered tea and asked the waitress to translate. She was overjoyed to hear the baby was fine.

 

After the travel permit arrived Ann bought first-class tickets for the return trip from Hong Kong for fear of any discomfort for the baby. She even packed a full stock of nappies, milk powder and a pram. As soon as the couple arrived in Guangzhou, of south China's Guangdong Province, they headed for Yangdong County Social Welfare Institution. There, they met Madame Li, head of the institution, before taking the 14-month Yang Zhen from her.

 

"She couldn't sit and her eyes couldn't focus on things," said Ann. "But I know as a Christian she is chosen and the timing is right. I know I can make her better. I can strengthen her in mind and body." It so happened that soon after they brought the baby home, Ann's husband started his mobile phone company in Egypt, so the couple brought the baby along.

 

Egypt is very different from Britain, where life in the neighborhood was rather quiet. Ann believes the sounds, smells and sights in Egypt would "wake up her brain and switch the little one into life".

 

Ann bought posters and pasted them all over her home for Rachel to see. She taught Rachel how to eat and how to tumble and toss. But most of all, Ann wants to give back Rachel her babyhood. "I swaddled her and treated her like a baby. I put her in a pram and let her sleep like a baby under the mango trees to the noise of car horns and other traffic. "

 

Ann firmly believes that love cures 99.9 percent of problems. She taught Rachel to swim and played Chinese music when she slept after lunch.

 

By the time she was 2-and-a-half, Rachel was like "a little flower waiting to blossom", learning math, reading and the violin. She was also baptized as Christian and goes to the church every Sunday.

 

In Ann's view, the earlier children know their own backgrounds, the better. For Rachel, that day came when she was 4, and she asked: "Mummy, I did not come from your tummy, did I?"

 

While Rachel is immersed in ballet, judo and swimming, she also learns Chinese language and culture. Rachel has been attending Chinese lessons every week since 2003 and attends Chinese summer school every year in Sussex, where she mixes with dozens of adopted Chinese children for a whole week, joining them in games, acrobatics and Chinese dancing. And she attends the annual party for adopted Chinese children, when 400 families take over a hotel for four days, enjoying a banquet, dances, live bands and lectures. They share their joys, troubles and experiences.

 

In 2001, the family revisited Guangzhou and the Yangdong Welfare Institution. Madame Li took them to the spot where Rachel was abandoned -- under a tree at a local market. Rachel kept all the photos, tickets, and other records for the trip in the scrapbooks her mom prepared for her. "I'm very happy that mom took me to China. My history was there," the 10-year-old says.

 

In 2002, Ann's family embarked on the Yangtze Cruise to let Rachel see "how wonderful China is". Ann also took Rachel and her granddaughter Harriet to Macao the same year to get the two girls of the same age get to know both Macao and each other better. And she made it to this end. "Look, all the people around have black hair and yellow skin. Only Harriet is blonde in pale skin. People liked to stare at her," Rachel pointed to a photo taken at a concert.

 

Ann has only praise for Rachael. "She is confident, smart, considerate and good at expression." Ann even thinks Rachel cleverer than her two sons. Rachel enjoys entertaining guests when her mom was cooking by taking out her China scrapbooks and explaining them.

 

About future plans, she said seriously through missing incisors: "I like here, because I'm settled down already. I also like China. People there all have dark hair and same skin color. Maybe I will go back to China to travel and stay one or two years. But I would worry about mom at home"

 

As it turned out, while Ann gave her attention to her daughter, her husband of 36 years left her for another woman. What Ann worries most about now is the possible harm done to Rachel, who insists she should "give daddy a chance".

 

Only Ann knows that what's done is done. And Rachel is starting to face this harsh reality. When she practiced her Chinese drills, they are like this: A: How many people are there in your family?

 

B: There are three. My dad, my mom and I.

 

When reading out, Rachel swiftly changed the answer to "There are two. My mom and I."

 

When Rachel was in her third year of primary school, Ann was already planning for her future. She had chosen two private missionary schools for consideration.

 

"Whichever secondary school offers Chinese lessons in four years' time would be our choice," she said firmly.

 

"We'll go back to China regularly. Rachel and I have planned to see the Beijing Olympics in 2008. After all, it's her country. It's important for her to be amongst her own people."

 

(China Daily June 25, 2007)