A journey into adoption - personal musings on our experience of going through the adoption process in the UK
Introduction and Summary:
A little bit about us, a little bit about this blog...
So what do we know? Well, nothing more
than anyone else who has passed through the labyrinthine process of
preparing for adoption – so much like someone blindfolded and
feeling their way around some strange terrain. There’s no room for
pontificating here (and certainly no claims on authority other than
the insight that comes from experiencing something first hand).
However, we would hope that this series of semi-random jottings
either strikes a chord with those who have similarly navigated the
rocks and shallows of adopting or provides some comfort and
reassurance for those embarking on it.
Headline – no, it’s not just you.
It is just as frustrating and bewildering as it seems to be. Just as
contradictory, just as inconsistent, just as confusing, just as
emotional but, ultimately, just as rewarding.
I’ve always avoided blogs before.
Burned into my memory was an insightful cartoon – two dogs sit
chatting next to a computer. One says to the other, “I’ve decided
to give up blogging and just start barking aimlessly in the street.”
So who on earth
would want to hear our opinion? No one. However, as we embarked on
the confusing and bewildering adoption preparation process both my
wife and I often felt that we were floundering in the dark, stumbling
through a half lit and ever shifting maze. We often thought that it
would be so comforting to find a first hand account of the process
and the emotions involved as either a guide or a preparation.
So here we are.
This is our perspective and that’s as valid as it gets. All we hope
is that you will find it, at least engaging. Entertaining or helpful
would be a bonus. Well, consider your “emptor” suitably caveated
and we ought to tell you a little about who we are, where we are and
why we’re here.
Dragnet – only the names have been changed.
We should start
with the famous quote from the ‘60s cop show, “Dragnet”.
“Everything you see is true. Only the names have been changed to
protect the innocent.” As you enter the world of adoption you’ll
start to see the importance of anonymity, particularly in this age of
Facebook, Bebo, MySpace...
Anyway, within
those limits just who are we? My wife and I have been a couple for
nigh on twenty years and for us kids had always been part of the life
plan. That never happened and eventually we decided to enter into the
adoption process. At the time of writing we’ve got through the
Adoption Panel and been approved. So far we’ve not been
successfully matched with any children, which leaves us in that
frustrating limbo in which so many approved parents find themselves.
