Brandon came to live with us last year. Today is actually the anniversary of his moving in. He showed up at our doorstep in the middle of the night. Little did we know that he would never leave. Many who know me on a more personal level know that Brandon has changed a LOT this year. He went from being shy, quiet, and sad to funny, outgoing, and hopeful. All that we have offered is love and encouragement and a home. He has blossomed and grown so much that when people interact with him now, they ask us what we did. The answer is simple, we did nothing but love and encourage...he was the one that opened his heart to accepting it.
This Christmas was the first time I got to witness him "paying it forward" in a way that was profound.
We were all sitting around in a circle, opening presents. He stopped, looked at my daughter with tears in his eyes and said, "I just want you to know how proud I am of you. You've come so far this year. You've learned how to love yourself and that you deserve to be loved." We were so shocked by this outward showing of love that we all stopped dead in our tracks. I watched my daughter's face crumple up and saw tears just flowing from her eyes while she heaved heavy sobs. He reached over and hugged her close and in a little voice said, "I have too."
This moment was so beautiful that we couldn't do anything but just watch and cry. My heart felt so full that I thought it would burst. A young man who barely displayed emotions a year ago, was now displaying pride and love so openly. They held each other for a very long time..both of them crying.
After we gathered ourselves and moved on..it happened again.
Clay is a young man that joined our family two weeks ago. He has a story all his own, but it seemed that fate sent him to us when he needed it most. On Christmas day he played Santa and handed out all of the gifts. Nearing the end of it all, he just stopped dead and started crying. My husband leaned toward him and asked what was wrong..to which Clay replied, "So this is what a real family is. This is how it's supposed to be. It's so beautiful. You all love each other so much and it shows."
Again, we were all brought to tears.
I wanted to share this for a couple reasons.
The first being this, I learned that it's easy to forget just how privileged we are to have one another. That our little family is so full of love and wonder. I need to remember this every day. Be thankful, every day. There are many who don't know what it's like to have a family that loves them. I pray that they make it into someone's life who can show them the beauty of it.
Secondly, it only takes unconditional love and acceptance to turn a person's life around. All we need to do is make our lives about serving humankind. It truly is about giving without expectation. When we do that, the amount we receive back can't be measured.
And lastly, to all of the kids that have come into our homes over the last few years. I love you all..I love you as much as if you were born to me. You are all amazing, talented, loving, and deserving people. You have helped raise me as much as I have raised you. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to love you.
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