Messenger for Adoption

"Way to go Supermom, keep up the good work!"  I looked up from loading my groceries into the back of the BWV {Big White Van}, to see a smiling lady carrying a baby on her hip while walking to her vehicle.  Her husband was up ahead with the grocery cart and I heard him say "that's what we need, a giant cargo van".

Instantly I felt myself start to get defensive, and listened for the inevitable follow up comment such as "glad that isn't me!", or "I can't imagine having that many kids!"  I pushed my carts to the coral and then headed around the van to get into the driver's seat.  Turns out the couple was right next to us, so we ran into each other again.  The lady said "are all of the children yours?".  I replied that "yes, indeed they were all mine" and it turned into a short conversation about adoption.

From the initial "supermom" comment, my first response was to be annoyed at what I perceived to be snarky comments.  As it turned out, it was a couple with three children, who were considering adoption.  I'm glad I didn't go with my first inclination, and rebuff the conversation.  Not only would I have missed the opportunity to encourage a family toward adoption, but my children would have noticed too.

Most of my kids are old enough now to have their ears perk up when someone asks about our family.  They are waiting to hear what the stranger says, and more importantly, what I have to say.  If I'm answering questions with an edge to my voice or an "I can't be bothered" attitude, I think it gives an underlying feeling that somehow our family isn't good enough.   Maybe we have something to hide, or maybe even a bit embarrassed.

I certainly don't share our story with every person on the street, and there is a great big difference between things that are private and things that are a secret.  We don't have any secrets, but no doubt about it our children's stories are private and theirs to share.

What I can do is {try to!} be open to the promptings of the Holy Spirit to keep my initial defensiveness from bubbling up, which in turn might stifle a positive conversation!  It's easy to jump the gun and assume someone is taking a shot at my family.  Thankfully, in this instance, I didn't go with my initial response and took a moment to share the positive way adoption has impacted our lives and hopefully encourage a family on their journey.