I’m on a quest to eliminate my weekends from my extended work week and make them real weekends filled with relaxation and enjoyment. In my efforts to rejuvenate, I spent time watching my new favorite TV channel – GMC. This weekend was the premiere of the GMC original movie “Somebody’s Child”. This was a touching story about a mother/grandmother who is in need of a kidney. While receiving dialysis, she meets a recently released convict and convinces her son to hire him at the family restaurant. The new employee anonymously donates his kidney to the mother as part of his personal restitution list. In the end, the mother discovers that the ex-con is her biological son whom she was forced to give up for adoption thirty-seven years earlier. The sons are not only brothers but fraternal twins. The family is given a second chance.
I was so excited that GMC TV has once again provided the opportunity for people all over the country (and possibly the world) to talk about adoption and foster care. I followed the Twitter stream for the movie. There were two lines in the movie that were very powerful.
(1) While sharing the story of his childhood, the adopted son recalls his years in foster care and says he was comforted by knowing that he was “Somebody’s Child.” YES, every child awaiting adoption IS somebody’s child and thank you GMC for saying so. In fact, they are all OUR children.
(2) The mother’s body rejects the kidney and she passes away. As her sons discuss her life in the hospital hallway, her son who was adopted says to his brother “if it weren’t for a simple twist of fate you would be in my shoes”. Right again, GMC. We can’t choose our parents and any of us could have found ourselves in a similar situation due to no fault of our own.
I dedicate this blog to the thousands of children awaiting permanent homes and families. We are working on your behalf.
I also want to say THANK YOU to the amazing organizations that are serving children in foster care.
You may also want to read the article “Don’t Let The Foster Care Conversations Cease”
Nicki Sanders, MSW, Chief Visionary Officer
The Teen Toolbox provides youth portfolio development and civic engagement and academic enrichment opportunities to help teens set goals for life after high school and create a road map to reach those goals through its PACKAGED FOR SUCCESS™ Programs.