I think little girls are somehow programmed to want to one day desire get married and have a family. We hold this thought close to our heart and believe that it will just happen one day. To some respect I have been a "mom" to my students for the past 14 years. I have taught art and have always enjoyed the rapport that I have had with my students. These were my children although the longing to have my own had gotten stronger over the years. Infertility tends to cast a shadow on dreams of having a baby, and after 2 medical procedures, and 3 rounds of IUI with a fertility specialist, we looked for another option. I also tried accupuncture, massage therapy, counseling, and cranio sacrum therapy (my personal favorite.) :) These were sought after as I believed that I needed to be better balanced, on a few levels. Prayer is the final aspect that I have been practicing for years. I know that God has led us to the right medical professionals for treatments, for each was highly recomended by another and has receieved allcolades from the medical profession.
I think that adoption is a beautiful thing, and I would be open to this, but in our case, we actually did not meet the criteria for various countries: of being married for 5 years and under the age of 45. I am currently 42 and my husband, Thomas, is nearly 40. I came to the idea of surrogacy after doing some research on the internet and seeing a past segment on Oprah about couples who had undergone this journey. There also was an artlcle in Newsweek, titled "Womb for Rent," which dealt with surrogacy both in the states and in India. I like how we can help someone achieve a home or an education for their children. I feel that this is so signifigant and truly beautiful. The women who agree to do the program already have a family of their own, plus the egg belongs to a donor, so it is not truly theirs. Plus in India, the contracts are final, once the paperwork has been signed the surrogate surrenders all rights to the child.
Arriving at the airport in Dubai we were immediately stuck with being the minority. Beautiful and mysterious women in black veils, only revealing their face. Men dressed in traditional white clothing but carring briefcases and laptops. Indian girls giggling to each other while checking us out. I'm still not certain what was so amusing. (This is when one checks his fly just to be sure.) When I engaged the girls in conversation I found out that they were actually traveling to India for the summer. Apparently many Indian people "return home" for the summer to visit their families. That is some vacation, as most of us are lucky to get a week or two.
The second leg of our trip, from DC to Dubai, 13 hours in length, was on United. The flight crew was a great bunch, apparently about half of them are friends and have been flying together for a while. It was comforting to know that there were 2 male stewards on board, one of whom was from Tunis, and of good stature. This man was so kind and the female stewardesses could not say enough about his character. If you are not lucky enough to be in a first class seat (or Pod) as I like to call them, then sleeping upright is rather challenging. To pass the time I ended up chatting with various members of the crew, as I learned that they rotate shifts so they can all get breaks.
Jet Blue move over and make room for Emirates air. What an experience, they had 600 different choices of movies! Thomas was in heaven. They aslo use menus, in essence there are meal choices, and they are quite tasty. The stewardess were from all over the world and spoke many languages and they were striking, only one was caucassion. The entire passenger body was Indian.
