Keep on Keeping On....

So, after I had JUST called the school district back to call and tell them that I can substitute on a regular basis again (thinking we wouldn't get a call from Children & Youth anytime soon), I got a call from Children and Youth. As we all know by now, a call doesn't necessarily mean a kid. The hearing is tomorrow.

The child in question is a little boy -- age 4. He has some developmental delays, which frightens my husband almost to the point of saying "no". Quite frankly, it scares me, too. But I have worked with kids all across the spectrum, and I am not afraid of this particular diagnosis. My husband is worried that we won't be able to handle it. I tell him, if that's the case, that's what we say. Of course, he's not used to this. He likes to start things and see them through to completion. Failure is not an option. He says it's not fair to a kid to take them and then have to decide that they can't stay. I think it's not fair to not give the kid a chance in the first place--especially based on preconceived notions that may or may not be true.

So tomorrow morning I expect to get a call to tell us if our life is going to be turned upside-down. I feel relatively calm, though it's pervading my thoughts. In church, we've been talking about serving the people in the "margins". The people that go largely unnoticed. To touch the untouchables. I believe that this might just qualify as such a case. I know that we have a lot of skills that could benefit a child with this specific set of issues. But my husband has a case. No parent really ASKS to get a child with developmental delays or medical diagnoses, etc. But what a privilege to be able to CHOOSE these kids -- despite their imperfections.

My greatest hope is that we can ALL fall in love with this little guy and give him the consistency and structure that he needs. Fortunately, he has several support services already lined up. So that's a good thing.

I guess now all I need to do is get to bed and go to my meeting tomorrow with my cell phone fully charged. The hearing is midway through my meeting, and I've prepared all necessary parties of the possibility of my leaving to get a kid. YIKES! I'll keep you posted, as always.