I've been questioned several times recently about why we are choosing to adopt again versus trying to conceive another biological child. I came across this poem today and thought it tells perfectly why we feel led to adoption...
THE STARFISH POEM
Once upon a time there was a wise man
who used to go to the ocean
to do his writing.
He had a habit of walking
on the beach before he began his work.
One day he was walking along the shore.
As he looked down the beach,
he saw a human figure moving like a dancer.
He smiled to himself to think
of someone who would dance to the day.
So he began to walk faster to catch up.
As he got closer, he saw that it was a young man
and the young man wasn't dancing,
but instead he was reaching
down to the shore, picking up something
and very gently throwing it
into the ocean.
As he got closer he called out,
"Good morning! What are you doing?"
The young man paused, looked up and replied,
"Throwing starfish in the ocean."
"I guess I should have asked,
why are you throwing starfish in the ocean?"
"The sun is up and the tide is going out.
And if I don't throw them in they'll die."
"But, young man, don't you realize that
there are miles and miles of beach
and starfish all along it.
You can't possibly make a difference!"
The young man listened politely.
Then bent down, picked up another starfish
and threw it into the sea,
past the breaking waves and said-
"It made a difference for that one."
THE STARFISH POEM
Once upon a time there was a wise man
who used to go to the ocean
to do his writing.
He had a habit of walking
on the beach before he began his work.
One day he was walking along the shore.
As he looked down the beach,
he saw a human figure moving like a dancer.
He smiled to himself to think
of someone who would dance to the day.
So he began to walk faster to catch up.
As he got closer, he saw that it was a young man
and the young man wasn't dancing,
but instead he was reaching
down to the shore, picking up something
and very gently throwing it
into the ocean.
As he got closer he called out,
"Good morning! What are you doing?"
The young man paused, looked up and replied,
"Throwing starfish in the ocean."
"I guess I should have asked,
why are you throwing starfish in the ocean?"
"The sun is up and the tide is going out.
And if I don't throw them in they'll die."
"But, young man, don't you realize that
there are miles and miles of beach
and starfish all along it.
You can't possibly make a difference!"
The young man listened politely.
Then bent down, picked up another starfish
and threw it into the sea,
past the breaking waves and said-
"It made a difference for that one."
author unknown
We want to be the ones to make a difference to another child or children. There are so many children in this world in need of a warm bed, a loving home and a compassionate family...why would we NOT choose adoption?
2 comments:
so beautifully and perfectly put.
So so glad you are opening your heart and home to a blessed child :)
Found your blog through a comment link on The Missing Piece. We are a foster family hoping to add through adoption. When deciding on a name for my blog I thought about what fostering might look like to other people. Having bio children {and many of them} people cannot grasp the fact that we want 'more'. I always get the reaction of 'I could never do what you're doing' or 'it would be too hard to let the children go'. It's definitely been a wild and crazy ride through the foster system for the last 5 years. But I know that each little 'starfish' that we have helped has had the benefit of a loving, stable environment while they were with us. I feel by helping these little ones I am being a part of something much bigger than I am. I always wonder what kind of world this would be if everyone 'stepped up' more often.
Glad I found your blog. :)
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