Adoption Poetry

“To Parents of Adopted Children”
written by Dr. Joyce Maguire Pavao, who was adopted.

You cannot change the truth
these are your children
but they came from somewhere else
and they are the children of those places
and of those people as well

Help them to know all about their past
and all about their present
help them to know that they are from extended families
that they only have one parent or set of parents
but that they have more mothers and fathers
they have grandmothers, godmothers, birthmothers, mother countries and
mother earth
they have grandfathers, godfathers, birthfathers and fatherlands
they have family by birth and by adoption
they have family by choice and by chance

Childhood is short
they are our children to raise
they are our children to love
and then they are citizens of the world
What we do to them creates the world that we live in
Give them life
Give them their truth
Give them love
Give them all that they came with
Give them all that they grow with

Your children do not belong to you
but they belong with you
you cannot keep them from what is theirs
but you can keep loving them
You do not own your children
but they are your own

Christian Child Placement Service
e-mail: adopt@nmcch.org
http://www.adoptnewmexico.org/
http://www.facebook.com/Adoption.aChoiceforLife
twiter: @pregnancy_adopt
1-800-553-2229 (BABY) ex. 14