Ignorance is Bliss...Or So They Say

I'll be honest. Some days I wish I didn't know some of the thing I know. It would make life easier, or so I think.

Like, if I didn't know that there were people mourning the loss of their child, who held so much promise, because of a car accident, I wouldn't be so concerned with my own daughter learning how to drive. 

If I didn't know the effect drugs and alcohol can have on a person, I might be more inclined to drink.

If I didn't know how many kids are sitting in an orphanage in Africa with their parents alive just not equipped to properly care for their children, I might not care when my friend asks for help in bringing resources to those parents and those helping these families.

If I didn't know that a sibling set of 4 was separated because there was not a home who could take all 4 of them, I might not look at houses or house plans that I know I cannot afford and try to figure out how to get that house.

But, I do know. I know those things and so much more. And I can't stay quiet. I can't sit down and pretend that I don't know some of the realities of life.

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month. I know too much to just pretend like this isn't something that needs to be addressed. I have seen too many families hurt by child abuse.

I truly believe that the cycle of child abuse and neglect can be broken if more people would step in. I watch news story after news story about people who abuse children, often babies or toddlers because of their inability to handle the emotions they feel when this babies are upset. It breaks my heart when I think about what might have happened if they were taught TBRI and other coping mechanisms that we were taught when we were planning on bringing kids in foster care into our house. What precious lives would have been spared had they only known how to walk away for a few minutes.

So here I am. No longer asking but telling you, begging you to get started. Ask yourself how you can get involved. Here are some great ideas for building community right where you are.

I spoke to a friend the other day about an opportunity she saw to get involved and how it impacted her. She didn't see it because we were talking on the phone, but I was grinning from ear to ear as she told me about how she did it. She stepped into the cycle and helped. She started to get involved.

Y'all, we need more people to do this. We need to not be afraid of what will happen but instead just do it.

There are over 2,000 cases of abuse and neglect in 2015 in Travis County alone. That breaks my heart.

Ignorance is not bliss. It's harmful.

When one door closes

When we began the journey to foster and adoption back in 2011 we had very few expectations of what our journey would look like. We had no idea what foster care would look like. We knew that we were open to foster care with the option of reunification and foster care with the option of adoption. We did not know where God would take us, we just knew that God was taking us somewhere.

I still remember getting the profile on our kids along with a few other options that were open. I remember preparing for every scenario that was presented. Thinking of furniture arrangement in rooms, bedding that needed to be purchased in the case of each scenario, etc... Our placing case manager at the time kind of chuckled as I thought out loud about what we needed to purchase. He told me to hold off until we knew for certain which placement was coming to us. In my know it all way I let him know that we would definitely be ready to respond as soon as he would just let us know who was coming to our home.

Fast forward 4.5 years and I chuckle to myself as I think of that girl back in 2011. So unaware of what was in store for her little family. Unaware of how God would move her to love. Unaware of hurt and frustration at a level she had never known before. Unaware of healing and forgiveness unconditionally given and received. Unaware of how resilient human beings really are and yet, at the same time, complete sponges that absorb all that is around them.

Today we shut our door as we said goodbye to a 12 year old girl who was with us for a few days as she was in between placements. Tomorrow we will open our door and say hello to a 13 year old boy. I don't know how long he will be with us, you never really know. We thought the respite placement was only for this weekend but then things changed, as they often do in foster care, and she stayed with us through today, almost a week. We've said goodbye before. It's never easy. No matter how right the decision is there are real emotions tied to each goodbye. These are real kids with real feelings and real hurts so real emotions are inevitable.

We sat in church on Sunday, Easter Sunday, and listened to our pastor preach the Good News of our hope in Christ. He reminded us that we can persevere and endure our trials in life because we serve a Risen Savior! And not just persevere and endure but rejoice greatly because we have this great hope!

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory,  obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls. "

1 Peter 1:3-9

I sat in the gym on Sunday morning and wept tears of joy. Thankful that I serve a God who loves us. Who placed a sweet 12 year old girl, in the midst of trials, in His presence on Easter Sunday to hear that she has hope. We are overwhelmed at the goodness of the God that we serve. 

We are going into this placement rejoicing. We are going into this placement not knowing what tomorrow will hold and being okay with that. We are going into this placement a little wiser than we did our first placement. We are going into this placement with the knowledge that no matter what, if and when the trials come, God is good. We are going into this placement completely depending on Christ alone. 

Please pray for us as we open this door again tomorrow. Please check on us as we continue on this journey. We are thankful for the people God has placed in our lives and cannot wait to share this hope that we have.