Today, on this Gratitude Wednesday,I want to take a moment to thank all the people who walked alongside us on the journey that led us to become parents through adoption.
There’s a saying that goes, “It takes a village to raise a child”In our case, that village showed up from the very first moment we decided to pursue adoption.
It was not a lonely path. On the contrary, it was a path filled with people whose words and actions gave us strength, held us up, guided us, walked with us… and constantly reminded us we were loved.
The first person I want to thank is my husband, my partner in life, specially in this dream. Thank you for dreaming with me from the very beginning, but most of all, thank you for listening to me that afternoon when I told you that what I truly wanted was to be a mother, not necessarily to be pregnant. Thank you for saying, “I like that idea. Let’s look into it.” That day, our story changed forever.
Thank you to our families and friends for your unconditional love and support. To my sister, for the gift of breast milk for our daughter. To everyone who wrote letters to recommend us as adoptive parents without hesitation. To those who visited us in the hospital each visit filled our hearts. And to those who made us feel their love from afar through messages, calls, and prayers.
Thank you to the NICU nurses for treating our daughter like a princess from day one. For every detail, every gesture, every kind word. Thank you to all the hospital staff, the doctors, the social worker, cleaning staff, cafeteria staff, everyone who, in one way or another, was part of that first month we spent there. And thank you to the kind woman who rented us her house while we waited for our daughter to be discharged.
Thank you to the adoption agency and to everyone who contributed to this process. Especially to our social worker for her guidance, her empathy, and for walking this path with us from the very beginning to the final visit. Thank you to the officer who helped us with our fingerprints, an angel that God placed on our path. Thank you to our lawyer, and to the judge who welcomed us with a smile and words we still carry in our hearts.
But most of all, thank you to our daughter’s birth mother.
Thank you for choosing us, for trusting us, for thinking of your daughter’s future with so much love.
Thank you for allowing us to be there from the very beginning, for opening your heart and being part of this story. And above all, thank you for making the beginning of our family possible.
To everyone who walked with us... THANK YOU. Each one of you left a mark on our story. Every gesture became a memory we carry in our hearts. Every word gave us encouragement, comfort, and strength.
Thank you for still being here, walking this journey with us.
Today, on this Gratitude Wednesday,I look back and realize that my motherhood didn’t begin only with the desire, with paperwork, appointments, and decisions. It also began with all the love from our village. This village to which I will always be deeply grateful.
Grateful to have you here, heart to heart.
Melli
