Nurse Conversation

Today I had a doctor's appointment.  After waiting in the exam room for more than 30 minutes, a nurse came in and started some small talk.  It quickly came out that the doctor had been held up by an earlier off-site appointment and would be further delayed.  I jokingly made some comment like "there goes the dinner plans".  She immediately apologized, and I quickly told her it was not a big deal but just mentioned my need to be home for an appointment that evening.

Trying to change the subject, I said that I think I found someone as crazy as me.  I had just read a magazine article about Diane Keaton and how she had adopted, as a single parent, an infant at age 50 followed by another infant five years later.  She is now 66 with a teen girl and a pre-teen boy.  I commented that at least I'll be younger than that when my adoption is finalized. 

From there, the conversation turned to my family and ultimately foster care and adoption.  This young nurse was very pleasant and had genuine questions about adoption and then about foster care.  We talked for about a half an hour before the doctor finally arrived.  I told her the good, the bad, and even some ugly.  I stressed that the need for foster parents is extremely high in our area, as the number of kids entering foster care has skyrocketed in the last year and there are not enough foster homes.  She commented that she was a Christian and yet she doesn't hear a lot about foster care and adoption; she wondered why more people don't investigate being foster parents.

I think that is an excellent question.  I think there are two main reasons: 1) myths about foster care and foster kids, many of which are not completely true, and 2) desire not to have one's life inconvenienced or to experience emotional pain if/when foster children leave. 

The nurse seemed genuinely interested in our conversation.  Who knows where this discussion will lead?  Maybe it was God's plan to have me in that office to talk with this nurse on the day when she was bored and the doctor was late.  Let's hope I glorified Him and planted a seed that may grow into something to benefit some child down the road!