Future fears

Yesterday, I read an article about a 19-year old man in Orange County who died recently from using a drug called "K-2" or "spice." While the story was terribly sad, his death was not what scared me the most. What terrified me was the reason the article gave for his drug use. You see, this young man was adopted and had struggled to accept it and understand why his birthmother had made that choice. According to the article, at age 15, he went to a special boarding school to help him deal with the emotional issues that stemmed from knowing he was adopted. His birthmom had used drugs, and the article alluded to the fact that this may have contributed to his own issues with addiction.

Going into adoption, I knew that there were many potential issues that our future children could face. It had not dawned on me that some of these issues could be fatal.

As I sit here and think about what I read, I pray that I will know how to handle the questions that CJ and his brothers have about adoption. I hope that by having an open adoption, they feel more comfortable with their story.

Even now, as a 3-year old, I pray for CJ's future. I have started praying for the future of his brothers as well. Up until now, I had focused on faith, future wife and children, and career. Starting today, I am going to add to my prayers. I will fervently ask God to help CJ (and his brothers) understand why Brooke chose adoption and to realize it was a decision made in love. I will beg Him to keep the boys away from some of the demons that she has faced.

It still amazes me that after three years, I'm continue to find adoption-related issues/topics that I hadn't thought about initially. While there is no resource that can prepare someone completely, I hope that our experience can bring some issues to light for those who are not familiar with adoption.