Today was a very good day.
Today my husband and I pulled the kids out of school and went to family court to watch our good friends officially adopt their son. There weren’t any fancy decorations or designer gowns or expensive flowers. But it was, bar none, the most beautiful ceremony I’ve ever seen.
There’s no way to express how much our friends were meant to be parents. Or how hard this wait was. Or how incredibly well this little boy fits into their lives. It’s beyond words.
I did, however, write the following story, which my husband had to read at the ceremony because I’m too much of a crier (actually, he almost lost it and had to hand it off to our 8-year-old). Anyway, I’m posting it because I think a lot of the people who know and love them would like to read it again or for the first time. And even if you don’t know them, I hope at least you’ll get a glimpse of the amazing gift this little family has been given. It’s a beautiful, beautiful thing.
Once upon a time, there was a little boy. He didn’t have a family or anyone to take care of him. And then one day, he found himself lost in the woods.
He came upon an old house, and as he walked up to it, a voice shouted out from behind the door, “WHAT DO YOU WANT!?!” The little boy turned and walked away. This was definitely not the place for him.
Then he came upon a little cottage. It was pretty and neat, but it was empty and cold and when he called out, no one said anything back. The little boy turned and walked away. This was definitely not the place for him.
He was starting to get tired when he came upon one more house. It had kayaks in the front yard and skis hanging in the garage and a motorcycle parked in the driveway. A man and a woman opened the front door before he even got to it and said, “We’ve been expecting you.” He walked in and was greeted by a pack of happy dogs. The woman gave him some crackers and the man gave him some milk. He walked around the house. In one room he found four grandparents with soft laps and easy smiles. In another room he found aunts, uncles, and cousins with a million kisses and fun toys. And in another room he found friends with huge hugs and high fives.
He went back to find the man and the woman. The woman had hair like sunlight and the man had a smile that looked like he was up to something. The little boy smiled the same smile, climbed up on the woman’s lap, and breathed a heavy sigh.
This was definitely the place for him.
Tammy Soong is a writer, wife, and mom from Reno, Nevada. She takes an absurd amount of pain medication, but not enough to have actually named her children "Newt" and "Elfie." She spends most days stressing out over clutter, writing stuff for this place, and working on podcasts with her gal pals, the Blogging Betties.