. . . we brought Nicholas home. He was 13 days past his first birthday. Because Sarah was only 4 weeks old, he seemed like such a big boy, but when I look at his pictures, I see what a baby he was. Because they are only a year apart in age, I look at Sarah now and think about what it must have been like for Nick. Sure, she can only say a few words, but she understands so much more. She can point to her nose, her toes, and sometimes her ear if we ask her. She can find her doll or her lamb, she can gesture when she hears songs she knows, she can follow a simple instruction. What would it be like if she were suddenly plunged into a world where everyone spoke only Korean to her? And language is just the tip of the iceberg. I can't bear to think about what it would be like if she were to become someone else's daughter.
So, while I'm thrilled that we've had this year with Nicholas, I also think about what he went through when he came to us a year ago. In the last year, he has learned a new language (and seems to be meeting all the linguistic milestones on time, amazingly enough), become part of a new family, been baptized into a new church, and adjusted to a new climate, a new time zone (with days and nights reversed), a new diet . . . and more adjustments than I'll ever know.
Thank God he's such a sweet, happy boy! Today, we went to mass and out to dinner with the priest afterward. He was a riot. He chimed in on the conversation a couple of times when he heard words he likes to say. He waved to other people in the restaurant. When it was time to go, he insisted on giving me, Mr. X, and our priest all high fives and fist bumps (he holds out his fist and says "bump" which cracks me up). We're going to the aquarium tomorrow to celebrate this anniversary.
So, I thank God for Nicholas, for the foster family who raised him for his first year with such great love (we keep in touch and plan to visit), and for the birth parents who must wonder about him. I pray for the grace to be the mother that God would want him to have.
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2 comments:
This is so beautiful. You have such a loving heart, and Nicholas is so blessed to have you as his mom.
What an amazing year Nicholas as had. He's blessed to have so many families to love him, and I'm sure you are doing your best to be the mother God wants for him.
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