The Ones That Never Came

A year ago, there were some crickets chirping for a good long while. Only beyond the crickets, some work was being done so that I could retire from foster care. So that I could end this part of the journey at 25 kids.

Last summer, I drove five hours to a small Texas town and met the kiddos who were supposed to come to stay. I was supposed to drive back to Austin with their belongings. I would have put their belongings in the rooms that had been freshly painted for them....2 girls in one room, 1 boy in another. I would have then waited for the next weekend when they came for a visit here. And then for that next week when they came to stay.

Instead, I came back with no belongings. I came back at the start of a very long decision making week that would change the plan for all four of us. I came back with photos of an awesome weekend with three wonderful children who I knew I would adore and who were so much fun, but whose needs I knew I could not single handedly meet for the next however many years.

Humility.

Sometimes the best thing to do is to acknowledge that I can't do it all.

One year later. Six kids more. And counting.