- Joined
- Feb 20, 2011
- Messages
- 361
Here is a letter our just turned 18 year old adopted daughter wrote - It's something not everyone can do, but if you can, please think about being a foster parent.
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February 25, 2011
ETS Scholarship Essay
My lifes hardships and obstacles have shaped the person I am today and the dreams I have for my future. After my brush with child protective services, (CPS), I have learned that nothing comes easy. Yet that has yet to deter me from my dreams or goals.
I can safely say that my childhood was anything but normal. I was in and out of child protective services twice by the time I was seven and in six different foster homes. My mother wasnt a bad person; she was just lonely and tired of fighting so hard to stay afloat. When I was nine my mom passed away, of an overdose, and I can safely say I was in denial. I just couldnt process all that had happened so I fell into reading and school. There wasnt much more I could do. Then Tom and Virginia Hudson, old family friends, both almost sixty at the time, came to visit me and asked if I wanted to live with them.
Being nine and scared, I replied But you are old, I dont want you to die too.
Eventually I warmed to the idea and agreed. I was adopted at the age of eleven. I have been happy ever since. I finally have a home that is stable and people I know I can count on, even when I do teenager like stuff. Tom and Virginia are still doing foster care and are retired.
After all the hardships I faced as a child, I knew I wanted to help a child that had faced similar challenges. I knew I wanted to be either a teacher or a social worker since I was about seven. Both had their advantages and their disadvantages. Eventually teaching prevailed, though, because it was the best of both worlds. I could help children learn and be there for those who need it, just like my teachers were there for me in grade school. I just want my experience to mean something other that pain. I want to be able to use them
to help children who need it.
After the childhood I had most wonder how I am so cheery and determined. I always say it could have gone either way but the truth is I never had a choice. My will to become something better was just too great. But I am grateful to the people that helped me threw all those rough patches and cant wait for what happens next.
************************************************** ******
February 25, 2011
ETS Scholarship Essay
My lifes hardships and obstacles have shaped the person I am today and the dreams I have for my future. After my brush with child protective services, (CPS), I have learned that nothing comes easy. Yet that has yet to deter me from my dreams or goals.
I can safely say that my childhood was anything but normal. I was in and out of child protective services twice by the time I was seven and in six different foster homes. My mother wasnt a bad person; she was just lonely and tired of fighting so hard to stay afloat. When I was nine my mom passed away, of an overdose, and I can safely say I was in denial. I just couldnt process all that had happened so I fell into reading and school. There wasnt much more I could do. Then Tom and Virginia Hudson, old family friends, both almost sixty at the time, came to visit me and asked if I wanted to live with them.
Being nine and scared, I replied But you are old, I dont want you to die too.
Eventually I warmed to the idea and agreed. I was adopted at the age of eleven. I have been happy ever since. I finally have a home that is stable and people I know I can count on, even when I do teenager like stuff. Tom and Virginia are still doing foster care and are retired.
After all the hardships I faced as a child, I knew I wanted to help a child that had faced similar challenges. I knew I wanted to be either a teacher or a social worker since I was about seven. Both had their advantages and their disadvantages. Eventually teaching prevailed, though, because it was the best of both worlds. I could help children learn and be there for those who need it, just like my teachers were there for me in grade school. I just want my experience to mean something other that pain. I want to be able to use them
to help children who need it.
After the childhood I had most wonder how I am so cheery and determined. I always say it could have gone either way but the truth is I never had a choice. My will to become something better was just too great. But I am grateful to the people that helped me threw all those rough patches and cant wait for what happens next.
