My sister-in-law brought me to the 2018 Child Fostering Summit that she helped organize as a social worker involved in child fostering. I had nothing else to do that day, and to be honest, I just came out of a bad relationship. Well, it was a non-existent relationship since we were supposed to be boyfriend-girlfriend and yet, I haven’t seen my supposed boyfriend for the past two months. But he was around, oh boy, was he “around.”
Anyway, enough about people who cannot handle responsibility, as my sister-in-law would tell me. She brought me to the summit since she said I could feel responsibility. She keeps on telling me that I am a responsible adult. I do not know what she saw in me that made her say that.
They talked about fostering children, and little did I know my sister-in-law had an ulterior motive. She wanted me to foster a child, a child that has no parents and was a bit sickly. I did not know about this at first, but when the workshop titled “Every Kid Needs a Family: Research, Policy and Practice” ended, she gave me a form and said, “Please, be a mother.”
What do I know about being a mother, I asked her. She just laughed and said, “Weren’t you the one who raised my husband? Look at him; he is a strong, independent, career-oriented, and responsible family man because you raised him. I would be very proud to assist you if you would want to foster another child who needs a mother like you.”
Her words shook me. I did not see myself that way. Me, a mother? I just raised my brother and myself when our parents died. We had a bit of money, and it was not hard to live day by day since cash was available, but yes. Raising Andrei was a bit of a challenge back then. It’s just that I loved him so much and looking after him from when he was ten until he became that man that he is now was out of so much love.
So, what happened? I filled out the form, and my sister-in-law was beaming.