Retraction of sorts

Late last night Julius surprised me by explaining he had been reading my posts and one was wrong and it needed to be corrected.

As an adult I work tirelessly to set a good example for my son as well as other people that I might come into contact with. My father always told me that a man or woman of character always stood up for their mistakes, knowingly or otherwise.

Julius, I publicly stand corrected that you were not stuck in the tree, you were just pretending to be.

109 days and its going to be OK

No one said it was going to be smooth sailing, I was prepared for that. I thought perhaps I could handle it, my naivete' is now posted in bright neon lights across the country. Although instead of hunching my shoulders and sauntering off somewhere tail between my legs. I stand tall and proud that I did do what so many people are afraid to, that perhaps instead of being the final stop in a story I was the important bridge that will help lead to Chen's success, After all we cannot be the hero in the story every time.

Chen came over last night with his new host dad and although I had thought it would be awkward it wasn't. Allen is a kind man with a strong will and a soft smile. These are things that Chen needed that I could not provide that Allen can, as most people that know me can attest is I am not the discipline maven of SW Ohio.
I thought to myself after the guests had left and I turned off the front porch lights. Chen still weighing heavy on my mind all was good and it was going to be OK. Chen had found someone to help him and as I learned through the night his new family had confided in me that Chen was helping them through a lonely Holiday time. So is Allen helping Chen or Chen helping Allen. I am not sure but what I do know is there is a reason for everything and although we might not see it at first the answer is usually reveled in time and it is often better then we ever expected.

Chen will reach his goals now much easier with Allens help, just as he was able to easily reach the top of the Christmas tree with ours.

100 days

Its been a hundred days so I have been told. I battle with the thought I have been a failure.
We drove Chen last Friday night to his new home. I could not help but think about how this must be what it is like when you turn a pet into the shelter. The family all of us including Julius piled into the car, each loading a piece of Chen's luggage into the trunk. Along the 30 mile journey we stopped for what the boys called "The last supper".

Driving down the road past home after home of merrily brightly decorated houses I tried to keep the conversation light the whole time yet in the back of my mind I kept questioning myself. At 7:30 we pulled up at the meeting spot where we were to hand off Chen to someone who could help Chen. Chen's grades had been a roller coaster since he had arrived, sinking desperately low then reaching stellar heights when pressed with termination of the program. As a working mom, with one child in an alternative school program and another exchange student from Germany, 6 dogs and a traveling husband, caring for an Asian student with cultural gaps became overwhelming to me. Chen was sinking academically and I was trying to help the best I could while holding the anchor and treading water. The group that was handling the exchange students saw the situation and with expert ease stepped in and saved both Chen and I from drowning.

Chen is now happily resettled in a city not far from us. His life will be expectedly very different, but I am sure he will definitely prosper and have a more successful year then he ever thought possible.