Voices in the Dark I couldn't sleep in the wee small hours Saturday night into Sunday morning; frankly, I don't know why. I looked at the alarm clock and saw it was 3:35. Suddenly, the phone rang. I answered the call with the same exuberance I would in the middle of the day on the first ring, even before Caller ID could identify its origin.

"Hi, it's Debbie!" Our agency director has been in Russia on business for the past week and is now in Ekaterinburg in an effort to stir the pot. "I'm here looking at Elena right now. Your daughter is beautiful."

Debbie puts Dr. Irina, one of the orphanage directors, on the call. "She is very clever girl, very byoo-tee-full," we are told in a voice recalling Natasha from the old Rocky & Bullwinkle cartoons.

With Elena on her lap, "Aunt Debbie" tells her (with the help of a translator) that "I know who your Mama and Papa are," and that we will be there to bring her home...soon. Elena understands, but only to the extent that a 2-1/2 year old with no concept of a Mama, Papa or home can.

How soon? Judge Tatiana will be on vacation the entire month of August; priority for court dates before she leaves are now for older children, in an effort to get them out of a system that has told them about the horrible things American parents do to their adopted children. So, Mama and Papa will be waiting until at least September to get a place on her docket.  ¶ 8:07 AM