Cleaning out my computer, I found these pictures that break my heart and bring a smile to my face at the same time. This is a story that Mandi wrote and illustrated soon after she first came to us as a foster child, even before she was adopted, as you can see by her last name in her story.

This short little story is a powerful testament to the importance and value of both fostering and adopting. I applaud anyone who has done so or is doing so now. The funny thing about adopting Mandi is that with foster children, you are at least somewhat prepared to say goodbye because that is part of the arrangement. You provide a safe home of transition essentially. But my parents adopted her, which meant that we were not supposed to have to say goodbye.

Even though we did and I may never…