Memorial Day Musings

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Eli turned 12 over the weekend! He would NOT be pleased about me saying this, but my baby has grown up! Frankly, it's a bit hard to take that he will be a teenager next year, but I've found as a mother this is a fun phase. Self-sufficient with a great sense of humor and brains which were only created from the extreme recesses of the gene pool, leaving us to question how this came from us? We've determined adoption was necessary, because we don't think we could have created this again. He's my content child only upset if he doesn't have enough down time. So our day was relaxed while he tried to understand why a cell phone is definitely not necessary as a birthday gift at this stage in his life just because EVERYBODY has one. 

While we relaxed on the holiday Monday we remembered the real reason we had the day off. I make a point of telling my kids to remember freedom is a gift that is a result of the sacrifices made by others. 

She is loved, she is great, and she is thriving...

As life maintained its frantic pace this week my thoughts were elsewhere. Every year I remember May 14th, and my thoughts drift to a place and time for which I have little information. As a adoptive mom of a child from China you never completely reach a place of contentment about not knowing the circumstances of the day your child was found, however you reach a place of acceptance. Sidney was found in Hospital No. 3 in Chenzhou by a security guard. This is the closest bit of information we have related to Sidney's birth family. 

That day has gone through my brain thousands of times, trying to find the words that allow me convey my thoughts. The problem is nothing can adequately portray something as tragic as the circumstances which forced someone to make this decision. It's horrific that she had an illness for which they could not treat according to our paperwork, however it makes the story easier to explain to Sidney. "You were sick, and they were trying to get help, so you could feel better and have a doctor to help you with your fingers." For now she's satisfied with the story and has few questions. I relish her simple understanding, because I know it won't always be that easy. The tough stuff is coming. We continue adding onto the story as she gets older.  

I still ponder what her birth parents might think about her life here. Accepted with her anomalies as no different than any of the other kids in her class. She is not warehoused in a place where her special needs are considered something that makes her intellectually challenged. Instead of being ostracized most people don't see what's visible, because she first overwhelms with her very outgoing nature. Could they comprehend what freedom means in her life? 

So on May 14th I will probably always think of them and wonder if they are surviving and wondering what ever became of this beautiful little miracle. Thankfully, I am content God has those answers.