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Monday, March 3, 2008

Maria's Lifebook

I had to take a break from blogging for a few days to work on Maria's Lifebook. In the adoption community these books are a popular and helpful way to share with your child the story of how she joined your family. Most people scrapbook them but I'm much handier with a computer so I did Maria's on Shutterfly. If anyone wants the link to see it, let me know and I'll send it to you.



I think I've probably spent about 25 hours on it over the past 4 days (explains the sleep deprivation!). But it had to be done, for several reasons. First, time is flying by. Maria has already been home for 6 months. I needed to preserve the memories while they were still fresh.



Second, we received Maria's files from the U.S. immigration authories. These documents included many details of her life that we didn't know. They were heart-wrenching to read and too private to share. Some day she'll know the details. In the meantime we needed a tool to regularly and purposely shed a positive light on her journey. One that, like most adoptions, was born out of pain and loss.



Finally, our precious girl turns six on Wednesday. Although the book won't be here by then, at least the work is done. She's getting older and the questions will be coming. I hope that this book will help her realize that her story, although different from most children's, is not bad. It was all part of her Creator's plan for her life.



Maria's journey home was certainly a long and often emotionally treacherous leading us straight to the edge of ourselves. I've always thought it would be nice to have a roadmap of our journeys laid out for us. I know now that God, in His mercy, only reveals the details on a need to know basis. Otherwise, we would never leave the driveway for fear of the road that lies ahead. I'm so glad we traveled this road.



Simply stated...the journey was rough but the destination...glorious!

Stacie

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