On the morning of October 30, 2001, my mom was on her way to adopt me from China. It was right around the time of the devastating 9/11 terrorist attack, meaning that all flights entering and leaving the country were cancelled. My mom and dad have expressed to me how worried they were that they might not have been able to adopt me.
All of my required adoption papers were close to expiring, so my parents knew they had to act. They contacted the senator at the time, Barbara Mikulski of Maryland, and she personally made sure that my mom could fly out of the country.
This was my parent’s second adoption. My sister was adopted at four months old, which is the average age to be adopted at. I, however, was adopted at one year old, older than most in an orphanage.
Many do not kow, but when someone adopts more than one child from China, the Chinese make you adopt a child that has some kind of handicap or mental disablilty. I was not able to sit up by myself and was classified as handicapped.
The love that my parents have for me was so obvious then (and now) because they did not care that I would be different. My mom brought me back home with her and from one to two years old, I did not speak. My parents were very worried.
Through speech therapy and persistence, I finally spoke my first words of, “No broccoli,” and ever since I have a hard time staying quiet. One could say that I was “making up for my lost time.”
People come from very different backgrounds and enjoy sharing their stories that helped shape and form their lives. National Adoption Day is significant to me because personally, I know how America opens up many opportunities.
In 2009, approximately 70,000 children were adopted from China with ninety-one percent of them being female. In a society that values males over females, the U.S. managed to create more gender equality than most would know.
Naitonal Adoption day has its own website and says, “This annual, one-day event has made the dreams of thousands of children come true by working with policymakers, practitioners and advocates to finalize adoptions, and create and celebrate adoptive families.”
I strongly believe in this because I know adoptions are not easy. A family that wants to adopt somone undergoes extensive background checks to see if the family is a right fit for the child.
The website also said, “The day an adoption is finalized is one families never forget.”
This is a life-changing event that forms a person’s life. Some do not like the thought of being adopted as I have heard the comment, “I never felt truly connected to my family,” too many times to count.
I think life is what you make it. If someone does not feel a sense of connection, that is unfortunate. I, however, have never felt any different from my family.
People have asked me, “How does it feel to be adopted?” I always answer back, “The same as any other person who has a family.” Family does not have to be the same blood flowing through another. Family is about people that you can trust and building bonds that can never be broken.
Middletown High School senior Caitlin Fisher said, “I think National Adoption Day is important because they are being brought into a new family. It’s like their birthday.”
Even though some people do not know much about this day, it doesn’t mean that this day isn’t important. For many, it is a new opportunity to experience a better life that they would not typically have the opportunity for.
I would have been in an impoverished area, constantly struggling to function on my own in an orphanage that did not want to keep me.
Instead, I am here in the United States, a place that has so much to offer. Some people take it for granted. This day needs to be shared more because the person who is adopted and the family who is adopting someone are both benefit from it.
