The reasons we're attending the Together for Adoption Conference in three weeks are numerous.
But probably the biggest of the many reasons - is that we believe this is true.
We're looking forward to the conference. We're excited to be leading a breakout session on Friday called, 'Honoring First Families".
Registration is still open. We hope to see you there.
![Livesay [Haiti] Weblog](http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WImkelA85fQ/T774B_tbjMI/AAAAAAAANjM/Zup5rYTxdWs/s810/blog%2Bheader%2BTRL2011-07-07_%2B%25281%2529.jpeg)
Better to love God and die unknown than to love the world and be a hero; better to be content with poverty than to die a slave to wealth; better to have taken some risks and lost than to have done nothing and succeeded at it. -erwin lutzer
6 comments:
And thank you for all you do to make their lives better while they wait.
Some friends of mine are going to the conference. I'm so jealous! hope is a blast!
Lindsay
Dear Tara,
next to all the important work your are doing in Haiti, your conviction of honoring the birth families of our adopted children is what keeps me coming back to your blog. Coming to that conviction ourselves has been and still is a journey and it is slowly but surely transforming our lives. I am very grateful that I could meet our children's birth family a few weeks ago in Haiti and we are now starting to plan a visit with the children (they are now 7 & 6) in the next year or two.
Wish I could be there during the break-out session, I am sure it will be inspirational!
Love, Alexandra
Maybe after the conference you could put the highlights of your talk here on your blog. I know many of us would appreciate it! :)
We too, seek to honor our kids' birth families by talking positively about them, having birth family reports done, supporting birth siblings in school, meeting the birth mom and siblings if possible when we travel to Haiti, etc. There is a fine line though between staying in contact and supporting them and giving too much 'help'. We are striving to walk that line in the best way possible.
I realize that many adoptive families do not know anything about their adopted child's birth family or history. This is so hard for both the children and the families. Some families though consciously choose international adoption so that they don't have to deal with birth families.
For our family, we have seen the positives that have come from maintaining contact.
Love you guys and wish you were in Haiti when I am at Heartline with the medical team next week.
:) Everyone can honor them (birth parents) even if you don't know them -- just by speaking of them with respect and helping your child feel that the person they came from is of GREAT value and is intrinsically loved by God - even if a first mom is an addict I think there are ways to honor her.
My desire to love my kids' first families is born out of seeing my sister hurt by the family that adopted her baby.I would never want to cause pain to a first mom and hope that nothing I say about her to my children will ever be anything but loving and kind and fair.
Wishing I was home too Cheryl - have someone point our house out to you and greet our dog ... we miss them!
I adopted my first daughter over 25 yrs. ago when there was very few support systems in place for such or places to talk to other people about their experiences so I think this is wonderful. I just *knew* that I needed to honor her first mom in that she gave her life; could have had a legal abortion in that she risked her life to give her birth and then signed the adoption papers because she knew she was unable to physically care for her. Honor her ...you bet...we have always.
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