An Adoption Story
I’ve mentioned before that I’m a huge advocate for adoption. I’ve seen it bless the lives of so many of my family members. That being said, my ears always perk up when I hear a story of adoption. I was reading the popular blog C. Jane Enjoy It and came across this story from Sarah and Chance Clarkson. What followed were heavy sobs and a bewildered husband.
Sarah and Chance had been trying for four and a half years to conceive and had tried every fertility treatment besides IVF. The doctors weren’t able to find any issues that would cause infertility with either of them. They were still deciding which next step to take and discussed adoption one night but didn’t feel it was the right time. The very next day Sarah’s father, an OBGYN, delivered a baby of a mother who said that she couldn’t care for the child and that she wouldn’t be leaving the hospital without her which I think is an honorable decision. Sarah’s father contacted her sister who had adopted two children and asked if she was interested in adopting the baby girl. She wasn’t in the place to do that, so she asked Sarah if she was interested. Then and there, her and her husband felt that it was right and said yes! They headed off for the hospital (not planning this at all, they didn’t even had diapers!) and when they received a text from her dad with a photo of the baby (this is where the sobs come in) Sarah said she knew she was a mother.
In this video (full disclosure, the video is part of the I Am Mormon campaign) where they share their experience Sarah said something that struck me, “I know people say that, ‘Well it’s different when they’re your own.’ It doesn’t matter. They don’t have to be blood. She was mine.”
My sister and husband adopted a son about a year ago. I remember anxiously awaiting to meet him but I did wonder if it would feel any different then meeting my nieces and nephews that are blood related and who resembled their parents. From the moment I held that baby in my arms and saw my sister and husband’s love for him, I was overwhelmed by the feeling that this baby was meant to be with them. That he belonged to their family, blood relation or not.
I love adoption. And though it may not be for everyone, I hope that everyone can see the miracle it is.
Sometimes -
God sends rain
Straight from the sky
To nourish the young flower
and it grows.
Sometimes -
God sends rain from the sky
To the mountaintops,
Then over hills and through valley
Until it reaches the flower
and it grows, just the same
Sometimes-
God sends a child
Straight from His realm
Into a mother’s arms
and love grows.
Sometimes -
God sends a child
From heaven to another’s arms,
Then over hills and through valleys
Until he reaches the arms of his mothers
and love grows, just the same.
– Just the Same by Diana Lynn Lacey
Wow, that’s so amazing. I love these kinds of stories.
I loved this story.I completely understand where she is coming from. My husband and I adopted a few years ago after struggling with infertility. We were prepared to wait a few years but just two months after beginning the process we revived a phone call and were asked if we could take a baby girl in just a few hours. We had nothing and knew nothing about her and had less than 4 hours to prepare but we of course said yes. As soon as I saw her I knew she was my baby.
As a parent of an adopted child and two bio kids, I can say with some confidence that the process of attachment and bonding is different when the child is “your own.” (how I hate that term!) But the end result is the same. All my children are my own even though they came to me in different ways. Neither is better or worse, just different. Loved this happy adoption story!
I love this story! I have 2 biological girls, my husband has a boy and a girl. Their mother is still in their lives somewhat, but for the day to day (12 out of every 14) – we’re a 6 member family, I run my step daughters girl scout troop, I give them their medicine, help with homework, make special clothes or curtains hear their daily woes and hug them when life is a struggle.
I didn’t set out to “adopt” 2 additional children, but I feel more like a perfect family when we’re all together. the family God intended me to have.
I love this story. As a fellow adoptive mother, I know the immediate feeling of being my son’s mother. After telling someone that he was adopted, I was asked if I had children on my own too. I had to take a deep breath and explain what a miracle he was and how he is now ours.
I recently read an amazing book on adoption called Baby, We Were Meant for Each Other by Scott Simon. In it he says: “But we cannot imagine anything more remarkable and marvelous than having a stranger put into your arms who becomes, in minutes, your flesh, your blood: your life. There are times when the adoption process is exhausting and painful and makes you want to scream. But, I am told, so does childbirth.”
I love adoption!
This is so beautiful, thank you so much for sharing this story.