It made me reflect

Earlier this week, in news that didn't matter to most, the LDS Church announced that it was shuttering the adoption services it has offered for decades through LDS Family Services. The reasons behind it make sense - lower teen pregnancy rates, fewer birth mothers willing to give their child up for adoption - but the announcement struck me as it hit close to home. As I've written about before, I am an adoptee and was adopted through LDS Family Services. So simple logic dictates that were it not for their services, I would not be where I am today and that's why the news of the closure of their adoption services struck a chord with me.

It's not that I fear my records are gone forever. That's never been an issue because A) it's not important to me and 2) as an adoptee born in Arizona, a closed record state, my records are sealed up tighter than a Kardashian's grip on tawdry fame or someone else's cash-stuffed wallet. That's saying something. No, more than anything, it made me think about how grateful I am for services that the agency rendered to my parents all those years ago. I was placed with the people who were my parents and I've had an amazing life as a result. The closure made me feel sad for those people who will now have to seek other routes to adopting a child and it made me sad for those children who may not have the same kind of experience I did.

Adoption is the greatest thing that happened to me that I almost never thought about until this week. Weird, huh? It's been an interesting week to reflect on the blessings that I have had. I don't spend time thinking about what might have been had I been raised differently. The life I've had through my family was the one I was intended to have. I'm grateful. I'm glad so many have been blessed by adoption. May adoptions carry on and bring blessings to those who still want so badly to have a child. I'm forever blessed for having been one of those who was adopted.