Part III: Miracles, Mayhem, And More Miracles!
Chapter 12:
I. Deciding Matthew's Future
Bill and I thought (and fought) a lot about what would happen to Matthew, the little foster child who was classified as "feral" by his doctors. At the age of six, he was nonverbal, only uttering howls, cries, grunts, and shrieks, and he was not toilet trained. On top of that, he was extremely violent, which mean that our more vulnerable children were at risk to his outbursts and attacks.
We eventually decided to return Matthew to foster care. There was no denying that even our love could not bring him out of his shell. He was far too involved for us to deal with. So we were rather relieved when the authorities from the foster care system came and picked Matthew up to take him back.
We cried at Matthew's leaving, but then again, we were relieved at the peace and quiet that had finally returned to our home. And we could pick up the pieces of our shattered home (and nerves).
II. Rachel.
Things with Rachel, our little foster child with AIDS, were not improving. She continued to be plagued with sickness after sickness, often requiring hospital care. She was a little peanut of a thing, with a sour stomach and a poor appetite. Yet we tried our best to make her happy or comfortable. It wasn't easy by a long shot, but by God, we tried our best!
The children were thriving, even with the interruptions from the arrival of "the fosters", as they came to call the foster care kids. And now that Matthew was no longer in the picture, things could return to some semblence of relative "normalcy".
Thankfully, Dajun, Linn Chan, and Hanh Ly were much easier to deal with. They didn't have nearly the severe health needs that Matthew and Rachel faced, but each, in their own way, had their moments of where they drove both Bill and I crazy. Hanh Ly was painfully shy, almost to the point of being mute. Her sister, Linn Chan, was a mischevious little imp, even with having no arms.
Meanwhile, Dajun often joined his foster children in their treks of destruction and mayhem. They made a very good team.
III.
Deciding Whether To Adopt (Or Not ...)
We were old pros by this time in parenting well over a dozen children, but it was increasingly expensive. I often had to work long, extra hours just to put food on the table or to gas up our vehicles. Even despite the drawbacks, I knew that this was what God wanted: not everybody was able to do what we did; having children was our minstry, our calling, our reason for life.
Bill wanted to adopt more children. I wasn't so sure, especially after what we had gone through with Matthew (and now Rachel), but somehow, deep inside, I felt the tug of satisfaction. I heard the spirit whisper into my heart: "Well done, Louie, well done". I guess even He was pleased with how we were handling our brood, even as things threatened to fall apart around us.
The neighbors were already having us investigated: they said that we were exploiting the children or they blamed them (or us) for things they (or we) didn't even do. It was a catch-22 situation in more ways than one.
