Fostering Hard Things
There are cheerios on every surface, bottles to be cleaned, diapers to be changed. I have dishes to be done and floors to vacuum, and laundry, I’m weeks behind. These past few weeks have been nothing short of adventurous.
We got another placement. A precious little boy who is by all standards, AMAZING!! He came to us at 8 days old and has literally been a joy to us all. He is sleeping well and eating like a champ. Toby has lost his heart in a whole new way. With the girls, he is the protector, the tea cup holding, tiara wearing Papa, but with our “Little Man”, he is the teacher. He makes him sit and watch his hunting and fishing shows. It’s hilarious.
“Butterfly” doesn’t love him so much. This has been the challenge. We underestimated her needs, and overestimated our ability to provide. The learning curve got us. It’s been hard, very hard. The days have been long and the nights longer. “Butterfly” is needing the attention, but “Little Man” is demanding it and she doesn’t appreciate it. We’ve found ourselves in a heart wrenching situation. It is necessary for us to let “Little Man” go and be in a home where he can have the attention he needs and deserves and we can fully commit to our little Butterfly and the healing she needs.
Do hard things.
The hard thing. One of the hardest we have had to do so far. We’ve lost our hearts to a squawking little nugget, only to have to let him go. Fostering is not for the faint of heart. It takes everything you have and demands a little bit more. It is the ultimate pouring out, the sacrificial emptying of yourself for another. My heart hurts to have to let him go. But I know we have left that indelible mark on his life. Even if only for a few short weeks, we will always remember what he will never know. He will always be covered in prayer and always be thought of and have a place in our hearts and on our wall.
But while we have him, I will kiss those sweet little lips, hold those precious little hands, and tell him how amazing he is when we have our quiet times in the evening.
Don't back down from the hard things. They define and refine you. They leave the trail of good you offer, the path that others can find and join you on your journey.
Do the things that leave you empty at the end of your life, completely poured out, spent, taking nothing from this life into the next. Live in such a way that as you breath your last, you have a plethora of people around you who are filled with all the things that are true, noble, right, pure and lovely, admirable and praiseworthy from your life. That is the true legacy.
