Jan-Feb 2022 issue Winter 2022 issue | Page 8

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Being adopted ...

By Karliegh P .
There aren ? t many words that I can think of to explain adoption . Not many emotions I can pinpoint . It ? s a mixture of sorrow , joy , confusion , and a barrel of other things . Sorrow knowing one part of your life has changed and that you must leave much behind . Joy knowing you have a family and a stable future . Confusion in figuring it all out .
never forget .
Adoption definitely is a blessing you
Just recently , I was asked by my six-year-old cousin why my biological mother
A doption definitely is a blessing you never forget .
sent me to an orphanage . What followed was , in a way , a slightly entertaining conversation , but it also got me thinking .
There is an interesting stigma surrounding adoption . Often , we will have the mental picture of a scrawny little kid in rags standing in a dilapidated orphanage , starving , and suffering from PTSD . Sadly , in some cases this is true . In reality , that isn ' t usually the experience . Thankfully , I never had to go to an orphanage .
From the time I was three , I was able to live with my two wonderful grandparents . But in ways , in certain , complex forms that many may never understand , I did live mentally in rags . I was an angry , confused little girl standing on the doorstep of love in the emotional rags of my old life and not knowing how to accept it . I was emotionally starving for security , love , and protection , while my little mind tried to work through the things that still haunt me some days .
Adoption , in a way , I suppose , is a fresh start . A signal that my old life is dead ; the traumas and the fears of it gone . I am part of a new family , one who loves me unconditionally . Eternally . I have a family who accepts my flaws and celebrates my victories . My family won ? t push me when a

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