We were discussing with my son, his fiancee, and her parents a rather sad story of a boy who had been abandoned one recent night by his mother. "I can't imagine what that must be like," said John-Adrian. I made some questioning but neutral remark like "You don't think so?"
"No, that's so terrible. I can't imagine what that must be like for your parents to just drop you off like that" he repeated.
"But it happened to you," I said in some surprise.
John-Adrian is quick on his feet, and hard to pin down even when caught in an error. "Yeah, but that happens a lot in Romania. You don't expect it to happen here."
Eight years later, we fill up the whole jar of who he considers to be his parents, and he can't imagine being abandoned by us. It is more than I ever hoped for for him. Damage does not always last forever. See previous post on Healing.
Children are a resilient lot!
ReplyDeleteHope springs eternal - especially in the quest to define oneself by healthy(ier) familial roots (which, as much as many try avoiding, is the strongest basis for the disgardng of false/imposed shame-basedness). His statement, to me, shows a tremendous power for resiliency and tendernous of heart (a special person indeed!) Cheers, Tom
ReplyDeleteWow! What a great indication of the difference your family has had in his life.
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