"We tried getting clothes together. Something she could sleep in and wear for a day or two. Usually foster kids come with the clothes on their back," Allison said.[rsnippet id="3"]
"Teens like M fail anyway, so what's the point? I wouldn't go through the hassle when the outcome isn't going to happen."But God gave Allison a fighting spirit for such a time as this! It took four months, but Allison finally succeeded in getting M's son -- who she refers to as "Bubbles" -- placed in their home to be with his mother. RELATED: Single mom's tearful post shares the raw truth about motherhood
"Fostering teens is different. They choose you. They choose to love you. They choose to stay. They've been let down many times before. They have to open the door to let you in. You have to be accepted by them. Nothing can be forced. I was waiting at M's door. Waiting for her to let me in. It felt like M's door would never be open to me. It was closed tightly with multiple locks. I wanted to disrupt. I still feel awful thinking this. I couldn't help M. I couldn't deal with M anymore. I felt defeated. My husband kept telling me I shouldn't feel bad. We can't help every child. Every child has different needs. We can't meet all of them."And so, Allison made a tough decision and put in her notice to have M moved out of the home.
"A lot of foster kids know. They know people leave all the time. They know nothing is permanent. I didn't even tell M I put in my notice. She just knew. I told her right then she was leaving to go to another placement. Surprisingly she already had her things packed. She had her things packed for awhile. A lot of foster kids don't unpack at all. M told me she didn't care and she hated it here anyway. Her next placement would be better because she wouldn't have to follow all of the rules like she does here."And that's when Allison had a change of heart. That beautiful fighting spirit God gifted her with kicked in, and she decided to work with M and not against her. And it made all the difference.
"I tear up because I almost said no to her and disrupted her," Allison said. "I tear up because looking back I'm astounded at her progress. I tear up because she can finally be happy. She feels happy. She beat statistics against her."Allison continues on later in her Facebook post about M's incredible transformation:
"She worked hard to get to this stage in her life. The child that came to me a year behind is now a year ahead. The child that everyone thought would fail and be a bad mom isn't. The child who had so much anger now deals with it in an appropriate way. The child who said she hated me now tells me she loves me. The child who cursed at me now calls me mom and says funny sweet things to me."Allison could have given up. But she didn't. She chose to love unconditionally, the way God loves us. And it changed M's life. When statistics turn people into numbers, you can start to forget the power of one. As a number, one seems insignificant. But as a far as God is concerned, each person is equally precious through His eyes. Changing a life, even just one, is worthwhile. Be sure to share this story to show just how important it is to be a foster parent! "But now faith, hope, and love remain--these three. The greatest of these is love." 1 Corinthians 13:13 [rsnippet id="2"]