Emotional Day? Well at the end it was!
You gear yourself up for these things and you, prepare mentally and even emotionally. Today was Life Appreciation Day, billed as an emotional day for all concerned as we get to meet and talk to lots of people that have been involved in the kids lives. School, After School Activities, previous social and care workers. As many as are invited and as can make it come along to share and give you a better picture, a more rounded overall picture of the children that you are being matched with.
I had said to our Adoption Case Worker to have 2 boxes of mansize tissues on hand for me, I can get over emotional sometimes even at the silliest of trivial things like Holby City!! So to have people come and share about the lives, good and bad of my future children, well that was asking for another Noah style flood.
Strange though it may seem there weren’t any really, from anyone, till the end. The Supervising Social Worker for the kids was recalling the length of time they have been in care and how the Foster Carers have helped and done such a great work with the kids and she got choked up and was struggling to finish.
Then the kids social worker was answering a question from our case worker as to how the final contact sessions went, and for whatever reason that set me off. That was the flood but it was more of a feeling than a flood. It just felt so final, like there was no going back for these kids, that was it for the foreseeable future, for lots of reasons that was the last time they were going to see mum and siblings, until they are adults and all choose to meet again. There was that saying goodbye thing and then there was also how the mum was with them as well.
Up until now contact has been somewhat strained and difficult; this time as requested, she made the final contact session wonderful, a great way to end the time that they would have of their mum and siblings. Their social worker was extremely well pleased with how it all went and made for an all the better, as well as can be expected, result to the final contact session. For many and varied reasons, there will be little or no contact post adoption.
Next is meeting with the Medical Adviser and another time with both kids social worker and our Case worker, time to really push on with the albums and getting to grips with all that is coming in the next few weeks. All good stuff :o)