Some Holiday Thoughts
This time of year always has folks thinking about family. This past Thanksgiving we began to think of family in a new way.
Our Thanksgiving was unique in several ways. We are a newly-announced-public-office seeking family, it’s the last year we will have a child living at home during the holidays - and a voice from the past spoke to our hearts.
About 6 weeks ago we received a call from David, a resident of the state of Missouri. We had not seen or heard from David since 1985 when we provided a 9 month foster home for him. He was a quiet, sad, but charming 16 year old who suffered brain damage from physical abuse from his biological father, lived on the streets with three sisters and his mother for 4 years and, until we got him, had been living in various in state institutions since he was 5 .
David found us again by looking for all the "Larry Stallings" in the United States. He is now 37, has no one to call family and wanted to connect with us. He asked during that first phone call, “Well, is there a chance we can be a family again?” Through our tears, we said, “Yes”. And so we welcomed a bit of our past to this year’s Thanksgiving, and found a bit of our future.
David is married to a lovely lady named Jeanna, a very independent deaf woman who keeps him on the straight and narrow, has 5-year-old twin boys and a 14-month-old baby girl who likes getting into cupboards as much as our daughter Faith did, and with as much single-minded determination, too.
We talked non-stop, ate a lot and played with the kids. We brought each other up to date and look forward to a new, more inclusive future as family. Even though we only had David for 9 months of his childhood, the seeds of family were planted in his heart, and he nurtured those small seeds enough for them to take root and allow him to become the fine husband, father and citizen that he is.
There are only two commandments:
Love God with all your heart and soul and mind.
Love your neighbor as yourself.
David was our neighbor and is our son.
Larry Stallings
Our Thanksgiving was unique in several ways. We are a newly-announced-public-office seeking family, it’s the last year we will have a child living at home during the holidays - and a voice from the past spoke to our hearts.
About 6 weeks ago we received a call from David, a resident of the state of Missouri. We had not seen or heard from David since 1985 when we provided a 9 month foster home for him. He was a quiet, sad, but charming 16 year old who suffered brain damage from physical abuse from his biological father, lived on the streets with three sisters and his mother for 4 years and, until we got him, had been living in various in state institutions since he was 5 .
David found us again by looking for all the "Larry Stallings" in the United States. He is now 37, has no one to call family and wanted to connect with us. He asked during that first phone call, “Well, is there a chance we can be a family again?” Through our tears, we said, “Yes”. And so we welcomed a bit of our past to this year’s Thanksgiving, and found a bit of our future.
David is married to a lovely lady named Jeanna, a very independent deaf woman who keeps him on the straight and narrow, has 5-year-old twin boys and a 14-month-old baby girl who likes getting into cupboards as much as our daughter Faith did, and with as much single-minded determination, too.
We talked non-stop, ate a lot and played with the kids. We brought each other up to date and look forward to a new, more inclusive future as family. Even though we only had David for 9 months of his childhood, the seeds of family were planted in his heart, and he nurtured those small seeds enough for them to take root and allow him to become the fine husband, father and citizen that he is.
There are only two commandments:
Love God with all your heart and soul and mind.
Love your neighbor as yourself.
David was our neighbor and is our son.
Larry Stallings
posted by dksbook at 6:33 AM
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