In this day and age, and let’s face it, this probably has been said for many years throughout history, we live in a time with many “broken systems”. I mean you’ve heard the rants:

            “The foster care system is beyond broken.”

            “Why can’t the school system just get it together? We are leaving kids behind.”

            “The family structure is broken.”

            “The healthcare system is beyond repair.”

And I could go on and on and on…

Is there some truth to all of these statements not only throughout history, but currently right now?  Absolutely and without a doubt.  And I agree in a lot of senses. But the problem with these statements or questions is that they merely place blame but they don’t offer any solution.  

Not only am I a public school teacher, but Eli and I are currently working to adopt legally freed children (children whose parental rights have been terminated), ideally a sibling group. I understand “broken systems”, and far more than you know.  But just describing something as “broken” does nothing.  As a matter of fact, it points a finger at a lot of people and feels pretty defeating when you are working within or up against one.   

However, when you really break things down (no pun intended), there are a lot of very hard working, passionate people that are working within and for these “broken systems”.  They get up everyday and work for the people they serve, in spite of working within the confines of a broken system. And let me tell you as a participant on multiple fronts, it’s not easy. And merely identifying the systems that are broken does nothing. That’s the easy part–to identify and complain.  I consider myself an activist on multiple fronts of my life because I struggle to just sit back and only identify brokenness.  The ONLY benefit to identifying a “broken system” is to be able to take action and make a change.   

See pursuing adoption ethically and for the right purposes is precious and beyond enlightening.  It is about far more than just you and how you feel.  It has reinforced and taught me to advocate for those without a voice, to pursue self-reflection and education, to inform those who surround me, to speak out loud and strong even if my voice wavers, to listen even more than I speak (this can be a struggle for me, but I’m learning), and to put my feelings aside for the betterment and greater good of those around me. It’s interesting because all of these things don’t have to have anything to do with adoption, but really have to do with choosing to be the change within a broken system rather than just identifying one.  

It’s easy to get bogged down by the system, but true empowerment is found in action. So what does that mean to our current situation? As most of you know, we are still working on adding to our family through adoption, and we aren’t at the point we were about 6 weeks ago. At times it feels like we have started completely over.   But we know that’s not true…we are wiser, better informed, and ready to assist in changing and bettering the system in any way we can.  So what are we doing right now?  Blogging, sharing our story, listening to others’ stories, educating ourselves and others and pursuing the adoption of children who are in need of a permanent home.  In the future it means lobbying, continuing active involvement on multiple fronts, networking, and ensuring that every child is adequately taken care of…no matter what “system” they are involved in.  See it’s easy to say that we must take care of people, but it gets pretty simplex to actually do so.  I will happily take the simplex path.

~Chelsea