“I’m going to ask you something difficult. Are you trying to replace your children?”
But the house stayed silent.
Eventually, the silence became unbearable.
That was why, one rainy Tuesday, I walked into a foster care agency and told a woman named Denise that I wanted to talk about becoming a parent again.
Denise didn’t smile immediately.
“I don’t think anyone could.”
“I’m going to ask you something difficult,” she said. “Are you trying to replace your children?”
“No.”
“Are you sure?”
“I don’t think anyone could.”
She studied me for a moment.
Denise invited me to an agency event where prospective parents could meet some of the children.
“Good answer.”
The process took months.
Training. Interviews. Home visits. Background checks. Conversations about trauma that sometimes sent me home crying in my car.
Then one afternoon, Denise invited me to an agency event where prospective parents could meet some of the children.
