Our Own Kind

For the past few years my friend Todd who runs the Upward program at our church invites me, my family and friends to run the concessions at the games to raise money for Hug Away. The first weekend he always ask me to share about the foundation and what we do. I have to admit when you are speaking you sometimes wonder if anyone is listening. They are.
Friday night a Army Chaplin heard me speak and afterwards came up and told me that in March he was taking some soldiers to Ethiopia and if there was anything they could do for the school! The next day after speaking a woman came up to me and we had such an amazing conversation. We also have three more children sponsored! And there is always one who has to say " you know there are foster children right here who need homes."
The man wasn't mean just matter of fact. He was nice about it. We have been asked why we didn't "adopt our own kind?" I remember the first time someone said that to us it didn't take my husband 2 seconds and with a smile to say "Why we did! The human kind!" Mind you we were at church. Racism sadly has no boundaries.
I smiled at the man and said " I am aware of that and I am so glad God lead you to adopt your beautiful children from here, but God lead us somewhere else and were blessed with three amazing daughters." He smiled, kind of nodded his head and walked off.
I have never understood why some people think it is OK for them to come up and question you about your family. As common as trans racial adoptions are we still get stares, rude remarks, inappropriate questions. It doesn't happen often but it has and once in a while still does. And though they have no right to ask these things and I can't say what I would really like to say to them...for the sake of our children we try our best to handle the situation with grace.
Adoption isn't a contest, it isn't about the color of our skin or where we came from or how big our house is. Adoption is love, plain and simple.


 Every child deserves to be loved, nurtured, held when they are scared or hurt, ...no matter where they are from or the color of their skin.