Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Doesn't she look like a June?



You're probably wondering why we named our little girl June. Let's set the record straight. First of all, she's not named after anyone in our families. My sister thinks she was named after a character named June in Amy Tan's book, The Joy Luck Club. You can read a review of the book here. It's a very good theory--both of us loved the movie and Paul remembers the character June well. (I, on the other hand, have terrible movie recall.) And boy, it sure fits our situation. Problem is, it's not why we named her June. Last spring, when our wait dragged on and everyone kept asking us when we expected to hear from China, our flat answer was, "May June." At some point, I jokingly said to Paul that we should name her "May June." (In my head, I was spelling it Mae June.) To which he replied, "Or maybe June May." Well, June stuck. We did consider other names, but none felt right. So that's the story of June's name. But we do like The Joy Luck Club connection, so maybe we'll add that to the story too (thanks, Monica!).

Tomorrow is another big day: Our guides pulled some strings and we're going to June's orphanage in Wuxue, a 2.5 hour drive from here. We'll also have a chance to visit the location in Wuxue where June was found. This was not part of our "official" itinerary -- on paper, the orphanage declined the adoption agency's request to visit -- so we are all extremely grateful to our in-country guides for going to bat for us. It's going to be a very emotional day.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thanks for telling us about her name. And, yes, I've been developing my own theories about why. If she was born in March, she must have been conceived in June. So, since June, she has been in the universe, making her journey to you as you made your journey to her.

She is soooo beautiful! She looks so happy and serene in this picture. Is her cold any better?

Can't wait to hear about the orphanage visit. Wow.

Anonymous said...

My only question is 'how did you catch wind' of my theory half way across the world? Darn! "Jing mei" is very photogenic. Savor the spiritual moment at the orphanage and her 'finding location'. You better continue this blog when you return....I need a "gill" fix daily now.

love, 007

Anonymous said...

Well, now that I finally figured out how to leave a comment, she is absolutely beautiful and you would never know by the pictures how tired you and Paul probably are! It has been such an incredible joy to feel a part of this wonderful experience every day by checking out your blog!!

Much love, your sister R

K said...

I loved reading about how you named your precious little angel June. I have been calling her baby Gill for months now. Now I have been saying Baby June Gill. I love it!
Kelly

Anonymous said...

We were not sure about sending commentsbut enjoyed reading all the others.. YOU CAN BE SURE WE ARE TWO PROUD AND HAPPY GRANDPARENTS.. Just as every body else is waiting for the big day when you come back for sure we will be down to see YOU 3 as soon as we get the O.K. Love Mom & Dad

Chani's Bow Making Mama said...

Just found your blog. Thanks so much for posting from China. We're with the 11/30 WHFC group so soon we'll be following your footsteps. Congrats on such a beautiful little girl.