One thought on “Adoption”

I just wanted to tell my story with adoption. When I was in high school, my family adopted 2 of my cousins. It was harder than any of us could have predicted. There are family dynamics that surprised us. I felt that the adoption was a bad deal for everyone until my dad’s funeral. My (adopted) brother took the wedding ring from his own hand and put it on our dad’s hand at the viewing. Later during testimonials this same brother said something like: they never should have adopted us. Their family was grown. They should have been able to retire, but they adopted us, and our lives have blessed because of it. That was 15 years ago. Recently the same brother came to see me for a few days. We had lots of long talks and a motorcycle ride. He told me about his tattoo of a tree on his arms. It was a tree with two trunks. They joined at the point of his adoption. He made the comment that his life really started after he was adopted. I love all my brothers. When I let go of how a life “should” be lived and embraced the basic decent goodness of each, I was filled with gratitude for them. If you are considering adoption of teenagers, it can be a wild ride, but wow what a rush!

Tim

MARCH 19, 2016