We first saw her picture in a book,
In the days before everything was online.
She was a face among many
On one of a hundred plus pages in a kid’s catalog.
Not a book for kids to enjoy,
Filled with enticing toys and games.
But a catalog of kids,
Children that needed a home,
And we casually leafed through it like a store’s advertisement.
I don’t recall why we stopped on her picture,
But we did and made plans to meet her.
We felt the stares when we arrived at her foster home.
We were the minority in her neighborhood.
Her foster home was busy
With children running throughout,
Seemingly too many for the house to contain without bursting.
We planned to take her away for the day,
And she willingly joined a family of strangers
For her first trip to the grand museum on the city’s lakeshore.
I doubt she appreciated many of the exhibits,
But she loved the chicken nuggets after
As she fell asleep after her big outing.
We brought her back to her foster home,
And we agreed to discuss a second visit
To determine if she was a good fit for our family.
At the time, it seemed a practical plan.
Looking back, knowing what we know now,
It seems ludicrous that there was ever any doubt.
We said our good-byes and headed out,
But the noise made us look back.
We saw her inside the house,
Pounding on the door and crying.
She was almost two
And didn’t yet speak,
But she sure could scream.
And scream she did,
At us … for us … to take her with us.
There was nothing we could do
Except continue home
And call the DCFS office.
The next visit was quickly planned.
It would be our last.
We would bring her with us
To her new forever home.
The next time she left was when
She went off to college,
A vulnerable teen.
No longer the child without hair
Who walked with a limp and didn’t speak,
But still vulnerable.
She would return to us as a strong adult,
A beautiful dancer and learned scholar.
But most importantly to us,
She returned home as our daughter
Whom we love dearly.