On Thursday, November 19, Andrew and I attended our first RAPT (Resource and Adoptive Parent Training) class, RAPT 1: Introduction to DCS. It was a little bit awkward because we showed up about 10 minutes late and were the last ones to snag seats in the back. But…the main reason we were late was because we had to make sure that we had dinner in our bellies that night since the training was from 5:30 to 8:30 PM. And the class was at the DCS office in Michigan City, Indiana, which is about a 35 minute drive from home. I could tell some of the other people in the class the corner-eying our Jimmy John’s sandwiches, especially because we had to open the crinkly wrappers and the bags of chips, which were not quiet.
The 1st RAPT class was kind of a summary of a lot of information I had learned through schooling (My bachelor’s degree is in Youth, Adult, and Family services), books/articles, and much of what I had learned (and saw) while I worked in the social work field. Most of the information discussed was new to Andrew. There were 2 “instructors,” who were DCS workers in LaPorte County. And probably about 20 people in the class. Probably about half of the people in the class were in the class due to being in the process of fostering/adopting a relative of theirs. “Relative Care” I think it’s what it said on the sign in sheet next to their names. Next to Andrew and eyes name it said “traditional.” A lot of the information that they shared was “dry” because it has to deal with the business aspect and finances, but overall it was very informative. Then of course at the very end they played two very emotional videos. And because I am such a nerd, I had actually already seen one of the videos from YouTube when I was doing my own browsing a few weeks earlier. I highly recommend you watching this video because it is good depiction of what children in foster care look like: https://youtu.be/lOeQUwdAjE0
Even though I had watched the ReMoved video, I teared up (again) watching it a second time in class. And I’m pretty sure Andrew‘s eyes were tad bit wet as well. After a tad emotional from the videos, the instructor asked all of us, “Why do you want to become foster (technically “resource”) parents?” About five of us answered. One guy said “so we can be a light in the darkness.” And my response to her question was, “Because each and every child deserves that deserves to have a loving and stable home.” The instructor said that all of our responses were some of the best she had heard before, and that we were in the right mindset.
The biggest reminder for me during the training was that foster kids are victims. They aren’t bad kids. They are just going through a very traumatizing time, a lot of adjustments, and a past with some kind of abuse and or neglect from their own parents. It’s hard enough as an adult navigating through trauma, so imagine how difficult that is for a child who isn’t even fully developed. My heart breaks for these kiddos… and I just want to be there for them. I want to show them love. Them to feel safe and protected. I want them to have a fun childhood; a reason to smile.
When Andrew and I got home, we were both physically and mentally exhausted. I asked Andrew, “what was your takeaway from tonight‘s training.” And he couldn’t have replied with a better answer, as he burst out in song (which let me say, is NOT common!);
“Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world. Red and yellow, black and white, they are precious in his sight, Jesus loves the little children of the world.”
Melodys blog 