Djembe - Concordia College

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My parents then
gave us his bio from the
adoption agency. Fortunately
for him, they said, his
biological parents had
obviously left him in good
condition: they had put him
in a car seat and bundled
him up in a thick jacket and
blankets, with a bottle full
of milk for nourishment.
They had left him next to
a sport stadium the day
after he was born – a public
place where anyone could
see him and report him to
the authorities. Apparently,
his parents wanted him to
be found, to stay warm and
healthy; they probably hoped somebody who could afford to care for him would find him and take
him in to someplace safe, probably an orphanage. Many abandoned infants in China die due to
undernourishment or exposure, and still others are taken by gangs or beggars and used for dealing.
Luckily, he was picked up that very day by orphanage officials in Hohhot, and he would stay in
their care for the next two years, nourished and protected from any physical harm or dealings for
money.
Still, that begged the question of why they would abandon him. If they really cared about
him, wouldn’t they have just kept him as their son instead of risking him harm by abandoning him
in a public venue? Well, for one thing, his parents may not have had the resources to give him the
care he needed for his defect. They also may have abandoned him because it was considered bad
fortune to take in an unhealthy son, or at least a child with a noticeable defect. This social taboo
runs to the very core of Chinese culture. Because of the one-child policy enacted in 1979 and
China’s condescension toward girls and disabled children, Chinese couples prefer healthy boys
when the woman gives birth. Thus, if someone gives birth to a girl or a disabled child (regardless
of gender), it’s considered bad luck. For that reason, some abandon their “undesired” children to
the streets, not wanting to be associated with such a social taboo of misfortune.
That said, the fact that Nathan was found so soon after he had been abandoned is
providential. He could have easily been aborted or prevented through birth control, granted that
they had found out his gender beforehand through ultrasound or some other technology. Or he
could have been stolen by a gang wanting to deal for profit or a beggar demanding money on the
street. In any case, his given Chinese name (“Jia” means longevity; “Chao” means good fortune)
could be dubbed a self-fulfilling prophecy: not only did his parents leave him with loving care –
he’d also live to see an orphanage the next day.
It was four o’clock when we arrived at the New City Hotel, the five-star plaza towering
thirteen stories into the arid, polluted sky. In spite of the pollution, however, I was excited to meet
my soon-to-be legal little brother – chubby legs, brown eyes, puffed up Asian cheeks. Suddenly, a
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