Intricate

I saw a quote someone posted in a foster care and adoption forum and I just knew I had the perfect photo to go w/it.  Mother's Day in our house has always been a little bit of a wild ride, given our struggles w/infertility and all...and then 6 years ago, my husband's father passed away on Mother's Day.  Talk about taking a day filled w/emotion and then cranking it up a few notches!  (Notice I said 'emotion' and not just plain sadness.  Being that I have 2 children to call my own now, not to mention some foster children too, some of the pain of infertility has changed to joy - it's such a blessing to get handmade projects and cards from my kids!!  Also, we rejoice that my FIL is singing for Jesus in heaven!  I can still hear him taking the bass line when we sang hymns =)  So yes, there's still sadness but there is just a jumble of other emotions too...)  When I saw this quote, I felt like it hit the nail on the head.  Love is such a complex thing to show, feel and receive...Family is such an intricate group of people who we choose to love, but might not always.  For us, we consider a lot of people family who are in fact not even related to us!  We are so close to them, they have been given titles like Uncle and Auntie or Tia b/c they fill that role for our kids.  We choose to give them the respect and love we think they deserve.  The same can be said for kids that are not physically created of our own DNA but for all purposes are ours, for life or just for a time.  On days like Mothers' Day this year, my mind can't stop percolating like a washing machine w/too many clothes and more than the allotted amount of detergent.  How did I get to be so blessed to have these children in my life?  How can the 'solution' to my pain be something that may cause others to feel pain?  Why must all this be necessary - surely there has to be an easier way to sort this out...obviously these are all rhetorical questions...

Feel free to share but remember this photo belongs to me - thank you!

...if you are someone who struggles w/infertility, even if it was a thing of the past, please know I prayed for you this weekend.  I prayed for all the adoptive mommas and daddies, I prayed for those that are waiting w/empty arms, I prayed for those that are waiting for a court date and those that are fostering.  I prayed for those that are just now beginning to think about these things and the journey that may be ahead of them.  I also prayed for those men and women who are content to live life w/o children of their own, that God would richly bless them for the time and energy many of them spend pouring into the children of their extended family and friends.  

Thanks for reading my intricate thoughts today....I'm sorry I haven't updated the blog in a while.  The end of the school year is creeping up and I have a million posts I plan to write!  I'm just about to water some seedlings and hang wash =)  Two of my most favorite things about this time of year!