Lots of Amys, One Mom

I am unsure how many women Shaling has referred to as "Mom" (or in Chinese, "Mama"). As I understand what she tells me, she was in and out of foster care, plus she referred to at least one of the caregivers at the welfare center as Mama. In fact, she'd had so many Mamas in her first 9 years of life that we discovered at some point last year that she didn't fully absorb that we were going to be her last Mama and Baba (Mom and Dad). In her experiences, Moms and Dads were temporary, not permanent.

Here in America, she has interacted with several Amys. Obviously, I am Amy. Plus, one of her Girls on the Run coaches was Coach Amy. One of our next door neighbor's is named Amy. Last night, she met a Chinese Amy. Brock took the kids to a Chinese buffet for supper after the kids' drum lessons (while I grocery shopped and avoided the buffet). A young waitress named Amy spoke with Shaling in Chinese and told Shaling just how much she loved America as compared to China.

I believe Shaling really enjoyed the conversation, because at home, she animatedly chatted with me all about it. She then said, "we need Amy to come here; we need lots of Amys". I pointed out that lots of Amys might be really confusing. She giggled, agreed, and excitedly acted out the scene, ending with "which one's the real Mom? Oh, that would be Amy Reynolds."

She was just a girl acting silly. To her, that comment was no more important than anything else she'd said that day. However, to me, who has been overly sensitized to the words "real mom", it was very touching. Anyone close to us sees how she interacts with the entire family (and how we interact with her), therefore, having little doubt that we are her real family. So, this wasn't exactly turning a corner or any new revelation, but it was a meaningful symbol to me. Her Mom. And Real.