The Call to Adopt
Thursday, October 29, 2009
The call to adopt is much more than getting a child. It not only involves that particular child, parenting them through life but also hearing the cries of the other orphans. More than eight trips to orphanages has imprinted the need of orphans on my heart. Yes, it’s left many, many heartprints.
I remember well my first trip into the orphanage at
And then the time came. It was Christmas Eve. The other adoptive parents and I celebrated with a small, straggly Christmas tree thanks to our Russian friends. Many of us had left family members at home in order to complete the adoption process. I thought about them on the other side of the world. I had eaten well. Russian borscht and bread. I watched the clock longing for the time to pass quickly so that I could get my little daughter. The plan was that at midnight we would quietly leave with our precious newly adopted children. At long last the hour arrived. My heart beat with excitement as I was led to the nursery that night. They brought her to me sleepy and so beautiful.
I dressed her quickly and very quietly so as not to disturb her. Then the signal was given. The door was opened and we walked out into the Russian winter. Cold winds blew against my face as I walked sheltering my little six month old baby girl. At that moment I looked up into the night sky. Snowflakes were falling all around me. It was Christmas. And in my arms I carried the greatest gift. My child. I’ll never forget that moment.
But while my heart was so uplifted that night almost seventeen years ago, other little children slept. They still waited for someone to come and get them. They still yearned for a mother’s arms and a father’s tender care. Day after day, they wait.
The call to adopt has changed my life. I still hear those cries. I still see those cribs. With the rest of my life I long to help the ones who still wait to come home.
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