“You can’t save them all” – How many times have you heard a friend or well-meaning soul try to remind you of your inability to save the world’s population of at-risk children? If you are anything like us, it has been a fairly regular statement.
I usually reply with, “True, but I can help one.”
I don’t think we have ever had any illusions of becoming the patron saint of orphans. Our experience has shown us that while helping one child at a time may not change the whole world; it will change one child’s whole world.
The difference was made because “someone” stepped up and showed him that the world wasn’t a scary place.
Take the case of a sibling pair that lived with us for a year and a half. Krista was a fairly well adjusted 2 year old little girl. She was sweet and kind, the sort of kid we all love to be around.
Her brother, Aiden was about a year and a half older and while he was an amazingly tender-hearted boy, he was showing signs of Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD).
We had some concerns about his ability to build attachments; which at his age were a critical piece of his development. Fortunately, he came out of his abusive situation and received some therapy in our home where he began to flourish.
By the time he left our family for a more permanent solution, the terrified little boy who had showed up at our house had blossomed into a whole new person. He played like he should, he smiled regularly, he no longer hoarded food, he was by all standards a “normal” kid.
The difference he experienced was a byproduct of living a little over a quarter of his life in an environment that was devoid of threats and introducing him to love. It is not that we provided him with anything that you or anyone else couldn’t have given him.
The difference was made because “someone” stepped up and showed him that the world wasn’t just a scary place.
While we are frequently reminded that we can not save them all, I know that we can help at least one – and that is enough!
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