Red couch.

There is a legend in China of an invisible red thread tied onto those destined to meet, which connects and brings them together regardless of time, place or circumstances. The cord may stretch or tangle, but will never break. The red couch at the White Swan Hotel in Guangzhou has come to embody both that cultural legend and the adoption journeys of thousands of families.

We still hadn't made it to the White Swan by the morning we were leaving, so we took one last reckless taxi ride to capture this rite of passage on film. Here's Mia, the day before she immigrated to America, in all her glory.





Related, before we traveled to get her we noticed that Mia was wearing a red bracelet in all the pictures we received, and she still has it on now. We didn't know what it signified until we asked the orphanage director, the day we met Mia. Apparently, Mia's foster mother had tied it on her for good luck, and it is also tied to the legend of the invisible red thread. We are so grateful to this woman, who we will most likely never meet; she loved Pinyi, stayed with her for 7 weeks in the hospital after the burn accident, and wanted her to find the family she was meant for.