National Adoption Awareness Month: Celebration or Awareness?

National Adoption Awareness Month was initially intended to raise awareness of the children in US foster care that are legally eligible for adoption. I’ve seen numerous posts about people celebrating this month with pictures of their little ones joined with their families through adoption – domestic and international – and outside of the foster care system. Some may say this isn’t the intent of National Adoption Awareness Month. Some would argue this isn’t staying true to the original mission.

I’ve heard that adoption shouldn’t be celebrated because in order for adoption to have taken place to begin with something was lost or broken or destroyed. But are people celebrating that loss or are they celebrating the new opportunities that adoption has provided? And in that case, why isn’t it possible to celebrate and create awareness at the same time?

Take for example an individual that has overcome serious illness, doesn’t that person have a right to celebrate their life and raise awareness at the same time? I don’t think for one second a person is celebrating the disease, but rather the ability to have overcome the challenge or even the journey. With adoption, isn’t it similar?

The adoption community – or even the general community at large – isn’t celebrating the destruction of a family, abuse or abandonment; they are celebrating the ability to have overcome those challenges and to be afforded a new beginning (not ever omitting or taking away from their past or even having the less-than-good go unnoticed). No one is celebrating the loss of a birth family, but we are celebrating the possibilities and opportunities that can be given through adoption.

The original intent of National Adoption Awareness Month has been expanded upon to celebrate the opportunity of adoption for children from all countries and to simultaneously enhance awareness of the need for more education, more compassion, more love and more positive involvement. The awareness can be to work toward a “cure” to help keep families together, end famine, end poverty, end abuse and end disease. The awareness can also be that amazingly good things can come from less-than-ideal situations. Either way, for me, this month is one to celebrate and increase involvement and awareness of adoption.

Ready, Set, Monday. ADOPT MORE...Desire to Learn

As I continue the journey of homeschooling my Pre-K four-year-old son, I am constantly asking myself, “What does he need to know? Am I teaching him the right things and in the right way? At four, what is the foundation on which he will want to continue a lifelong journey of learning? 

As he sings the days of the week, I’m thrilled (especially when my two-year-old joins in). When he practices simple math by sliding objects together or removing objects, I’m amazed. And, when he wrote his name for the first time, I was absolutely delighted. But, so what? Whether I teach him his letters or not at four, he will learn them eventually. So, what am I really teaching him? I hope the answer is the desire to learn and ask questions and the ability to discover the answers.

Memorizing a bunch facts or concepts doesn’t necessarily make a person smart, but knowing how and where to learn that information does. The natural intrigue of things around us and how it all works is a sign of brilliance in my book. It’s that curiosity that will catapult us from one subject and level to the next. It’s that interest that will help us make the world a better place.

This week’s goal: Pause long enough to ask a question about something of interest and take the first step to reveal the mystery of how and why.

Happy Monday!

The Halloween Spider(TM)

This Halloween, kids can Trick-or-Treat with the Halloween SpiderTM for ADOPT MORETM. 

Magical, mystical, very intentional,
The Halloween SpiderTM spins webs fantastical.

No boundaries, no borders, the web he weaves
Covers the world with love for this he believes:

It’s not the soil on which a child grows,
It’s family, safety and unconditional love he knows

That makes, creates and defines you.
For this, more compassion and awareness are overdue.

More than just “kids helping kids” this Halloween season,
Kids want all kids to have a family and for good reason.

Click here to learn more about the program.

Ready, Set, Monday. ADOPT MORE...Green

Taking care of children who are already here in this world minimizes the ecological and human footprint, moves toward sustainable life, enhances our environment, and conserves natural resources. I believe that children are our most precious natural resources.

I've entered The Green Awards with the below video. Voting will commence 3/12/11. I'll get more information out soon.

Happy Monday, Green Friends!

Ready, Set, Monday. ADOPT MORE...Pauses

Driving to an outing the other evening, a couple of friends and I chatted about all the places we've visited and some places where we wouldn't mind relocating. Of course, the conversation stirred up obvious pros and cons of Michigan and maybe even some within the United States in general. People in America tend to rush, rush, rush with minimal room for a much needed pause.

We rush to work, to rush to a meeting, to rush for a quick cup of coffee, to rush to the bathroom, to rush to squeeze in 50 task items before we rush to our car, to rush to the grocery store, to rush to make dinner, to rush to get the kids in bed, to rush to bed ourselves so that we may wake up and start an entirely new series of rushes or sadly repeat the ones from the day before.

I want a pause. For me. And for you. A sincere, relaxed pause that will refresh the soul, inspire a belly-laugh, engage new conversation or delight your senses in a whole new meaningful way. Pause now.

Happy Monday!