Over the weekend, I was speaking with a fellow missionary who works with Child Evangelism Fellowship in Mexico. The point we discussed was that sometimes in ministry, it involves just doing paperwork, which can be very time-consuming. For him, it was figuring out how to obtain a new vehicle donated to the ministry from the United States and transport it to his home in Central Mexico. It is easier said than done. Do you import the car? Do you pay the $2500 to import it?
We are in the same process when it comes to getting Gee's Mexican passport. We have tried multiple times to get it. Last Friday was another attempt. We arrived at our appointment at 8:50 AM. We handed over all the necessary paperwork. They went over it. Then said we should sit down and wait to have our name called. So we waited for two hours. Gee did pretty well for a 6-year-old who was just supposed to sit there. We tried to keep entertained. They finally called his name. We thought this would be the last step, taking his photo and fingerprints. Unfortunately, this was not the case. The office worker informed us that everything appears to be in order, except for one document. Because Gee is not yet in school, we have a doctor's form that verifies he has attended to Gee over the last year and a half since arriving in Tecate. Well, one phrase in the document was not what they "needed". What it stated was that Gee had been attended to by the clinic, but it should have specified that the doctor had seen him personally. So, because it didn't say exactly what they wanted. We have to schedule another appointment. This office is only two hours away one way. So no biggie. Just stay in the car and drive another four hours this week.
This was our fifth attempt at getting his passport. The last one we tried was that his adoption decree paperwork was more than six months old. That is no big deal. You just need to have your lawyer visit the local office, obtain a current copy of the paperwork, and then send it back to you. It only takes 3 weeks to get that done. So, as you can see, these things take time. Sometimes you just have to bite the bullet and drive 4 hours and sit in an office for three or four hours. This is just one aspect of life in a different country.
We are in the same process when it comes to getting Gee's Mexican passport. We have tried multiple times to get it. Last Friday was another attempt. We arrived at our appointment at 8:50 AM. We handed over all the necessary paperwork. They went over it. Then said we should sit down and wait to have our name called. So we waited for two hours. Gee did pretty well for a 6-year-old who was just supposed to sit there. We tried to keep entertained. They finally called his name. We thought this would be the last step, taking his photo and fingerprints. Unfortunately, this was not the case. The office worker informed us that everything appears to be in order, except for one document. Because Gee is not yet in school, we have a doctor's form that verifies he has attended to Gee over the last year and a half since arriving in Tecate. Well, one phrase in the document was not what they "needed". What it stated was that Gee had been attended to by the clinic, but it should have specified that the doctor had seen him personally. So, because it didn't say exactly what they wanted. We have to schedule another appointment. This office is only two hours away one way. So no biggie. Just stay in the car and drive another four hours this week.
This was our fifth attempt at getting his passport. The last one we tried was that his adoption decree paperwork was more than six months old. That is no big deal. You just need to have your lawyer visit the local office, obtain a current copy of the paperwork, and then send it back to you. It only takes 3 weeks to get that done. So, as you can see, these things take time. Sometimes you just have to bite the bullet and drive 4 hours and sit in an office for three or four hours. This is just one aspect of life in a different country.
