First, did not sleep all night. It was either the coffee or the wine, but the two did not cut if for me. We were up bright and early to drive a good 30-40 minutes to Chimaltenango. We got there first thing and first in line to talk to the judge. She arrived late, but met with us without any hesitation. She was nice enough, but literally told us she has all the authority and does not want any of the responsibility. They her assistant kept coming in and the judge would have to ask her what she could or could not do and what the process was. Seems like the judge is not up to speed on everything and not willing to make any decision at all! She was very polite, just not decisive.
Anyway, she had not and did not intend on signing anything. By the time we stepped out to check on some items with PGN Chimaltenango, the waiting room was full and the judge started attending hearings. When we swung back by at 4pm, she was just wrapping up the hearings in time to leave for the day. They told us she would not sign anything until probably later, since she was tied up all day.
We waited for a little bit early in the morning, just in case...but juan's cell phone ran out of minutes, our cab driver was somewhere eating breakfast and meanwhile the entire court - assistants, attorneys, etc., were all just standing along the street trying to figure out whose car was whose. They were repaving the street and they all just stood there watching them pull the street apart cobblestone by cobblestone and the guy washing the PGN van.
One young attorney was there flirting with his young assistant (all decked out in make-up, skirt and heels) and laughing the entire time. With all that going on, it would be hard to get things done. So, they are calling us later to update us on what might happen tommorrow.
The home is beautiful, but it is in the middle of nowhere. It took us forever to find it and it is truly in the middle of no where. There is no running water to flush toilets unless the pump is running and the generator is the type that contractors use for their construction sites (the equivalent to 4 electrical outlets or so). There are dogs everywhere and the kids have a ton of space to run. They are doing the best with what they have.
Mariela cried the moment she saw us, but at least I got to hold her for a few hours, feed her and then put her down for her nap. By then, I had to get in the cab and head back. Not sure what to do - stay or go. I am out of resources, out of time away from work, and running low on energy.
Very disappointed that no solutions were offered. No one was putting their 150% in and we are just buying time waiting. And even though I heeded the warning and did not visit all weekend, it didn't seem to buy me any brownie points. You follow the rules you lose, you don't follow the rules you lose - I give up !
July 2008 family photo
4 comments:
Oh Telissa!
I am so sorry. Wish I could help. Still praying for your miracle that Mariela is on the plane with you when you leave. Keep bugging the judge, she may get tired of seeing you.
Stephanie (who still can't remember her Google password):)
I hate to say it but I am not surprised one little bit. I can TOTALLY picture the whole scenario and believe it 100%. I had to laugh at the scene of the end of the day where everyone was taking the whole paving of the road. I also could see the lawyer with his assistant flirting. Don't mean to sterotype but it is very typical. We spent 48 hours in Guate bureaucracy hell with our passports when they were stolen. They were to be stamped with an entry stamp and we needed to go to the Guatemalan Immigration office. An entire day was spent with our passports sitting on the corner of a desk while the secretary painted her fingernails, talked on her cell phone, chatted with her co-workers, tried on a sweatshirt for size... just to name a few things. I am totally serious - ALL of these things actually happened! All the while she knew I was waiting. When I would politely "interupt" and say, Excuse me - do you need any more information or whatever I might say to get her attention she would tell me something major which I would not have found out until I asked. We all know she would need to wait for her nails to dry before she could report on some new "bullshit" story such as Immigration had no record that we ever entered the country one time, another time that Delta airline reported that we were not on flight 311 (yes, I clearly remember the flight in fact, I was in seat 2B), etc. Then as we were about the wrap up another day of crap, she informed me that for 800Q, she could go ahead and stamp the passport for me. Apparently although they were greatly concerned that we had not entered the country legally, for a small fee of 800Q, they would overlook that and stamp them anyway.
I know I needn't tell you this but be as patient as possible and not let them think you are impatient, angry, upset, etc. or they will move into passive-aggressive overdrive. I am sure they are already playing that game now but you know the gig already.
My 2 cents worth... stay there until you can bring that cutie pie home. It will kill you if you once again come home without her. You can take any more of that. Hang in there and I am faithfully checking your blog for the good news and until then will pray, pray and pray somemore for you!!!
Hi Telissa...I've been reading the blog and praying for you as well. I have no idea what you are going through except that I can feel your pain and frustration. Keep channelling the gods to give you peace and patience. I know that Mariela is worth all of this and more. You are on this path for a reason. Start to visualize the judge signing the papers, going to pick up your daughter, riding the airport, and then flying home. I know it will happen and I pray it happens tomorrow. Jen
Praying you gets some good news soon!! The system is so unfair and I hope these kind of things will not happen if and when the new system opens!! I't so unfair to the children and their waiting parents!!
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