The lines on your page of memories
Write it down but it doesn't mean
You're not just telling stories
There is no fiction when Meazi tells her story. We are struggling a bit with something. When you are a 'potential adoptive parent' you learn how to protect your child's story. You deflect. You say things like,
"That is their story to tell, if and when they are ready."
What then do you do when your four-year old starts talking? Meazi told her story in Pre-K. Meazi also told her story to a woman she had know for three weeks. This woman was the nanny of a fellow student at summer school.
Meazi asked to bring a picture from Ethiopia for Show & Tell today. The picture speaks volumes. Steven thought we should just tell her she couldn't bring it. I spoke to her teacher. I let Meazi bring it today. It is difficult to know what is the best thing to do. We want to protect her, and we want her to feel proud of where she came from.
Steven thinks she is too young to realize what she is doing by showing such a revealing picture. My thought is that it helps her to express that she is a child with two countries. I think she wanted to bring it because another child in her class brought a picture of his uncle in Ethiopia picking up the child's two nephews. This 'share' was something that Meazi could obviously relate to. I asked her teacher to guide the questioning, making sure that Meazi wasn't getting flustered, and that children weren't asking questions that Meazi wasn't comfortable answering.
I hope that I made the right decision. Knowing Meazi, and how amazingly astute she is, it seemed like I had to follow her lead.
