foster care

yes... foster care. that is the subject of this blog. why, you ask? well... because I've been thinking about it for over a year now and I'd really like to do it. my goal is to start orphanages in China, but I've gotta start somewhere.

last year I got the "foster care bug" when I was at the Asian American Expo and there was a both for foster parenting Chinese speaking children. I was REALLY interested and they said they'd send me info... which never happened!!! :`( I guess it's a good thing nothing happened about it then as I'm still trying to get on my feet and that would've been too much for me to take on at the time.

but as I continue teaching and being there for my students, I remember WHY I wanted to foster/adopt kids so badly. I care about them so much and when I see them hurting but have only a window of an opportunity to help them during the week, it hurts me so much. I do as much as I can but then they have to return to the brokenness, hurt, loneliness and pain. I still miss my students in China and worry about some of them often. they touched a part of my heart that will never forget them. they were students to me and at the same time I was like a mother/older sister to many of them. it was so hard to leave them behind to return to America.

anyhow, yeah... so for some reason, tonight I was talking with my sis-in-law's mom and I randomly said that I had thought of doing foster parenting. I really don't remember what brought it up. we talked about it for a long while. she told me several of her stories of being a foster parent (she's had several of them and adopted one of them). it just ignited that desire in my heart.

I went online to try to find the program that places Chinese kids with Chinese speaking adults... but couldn't find it. :( that sucks! I really wanted to get more info about it. oh well, I'll do more of an in depth search when I'm not so tired. but I did find one link for Interning at an Orphanage in China . that's TOTALLY what I want to do... minus the being an "intern" instead of a paid employee. I just sent an e-mail inquiry about it. *praying* we'll see what God has in store for me. they require a B.A., so I wouldn't be able to start on it until at least Dec. '08 or Jan. '09 as that's when I'm supposed to (I say "supposed to" because I still haven't figured out what's going on about the 2 courses I'm registered for but have no info for) graduate... but that gives me a chance to work this out and see if it's what I'm supposed to do for my next step.

I know, I know... random. you totally wouldn't expect this from me, yet at the same time you TOTALLY know it's something I would do. not just the moving to China, but also the working at an orphanage and wanting to be a foster parent, etc. we'll see what happens... 'til then... I feel like putting up pix from a google search on orphanages in China. (forewarning... not all orphanages are what we, as Americans, expect orphanages to be like... they're over crowded and understaffed. thank God for the few orphanages that DO have good staff and group housing, like the SOS Village in Yantai . our students would go there sometimes to help out. also, as you'll notice, almost all the orphans are girls... that's due to the one child policy and the fact that boys are held in higher esteem... it's so sad!)