You have to be stubborn

Nicer, kinder, more emotionally evolved people than me will tell you its takes patience to raise and discipline a child.

Maybe that is what you need to be a mom.. but to be a Foster Mom, you have to be stubborn.

You have to be stubborn enough to make the visit supervisor get off of her phone so that you can find out how a visit went.

You have to be stubborn enough to stare down a child until they follow your directions because spanking isn't permitted.

You have to be stubborn enough to not cry when she does.

You have to be stubborn enough to keep a straight face when your child explains in a child's voice what happened to her.... and it's something that should never have to be said by a child.

You have to be stubborn enough to keep driving between the lines when she drops a bomb on you like "_______ isn't my family anymore because he broke my heart to pieces."

You have to be stubborn enough to not pick up the phone and shout at her caseworker for not realizing that reunification isn't always the answer.

YOu have to be stubborn enough to not call her real mom and cuss her like a dog for telling the court that her daughter is lying about her abuse.

It takes stubbornness to not call her former caseworker every time your child talks about her abuse, and tell her that had she done her job and removed the child in the first place, you wouldn't have had to hear this particular story.

You have to be stubborn enough to squash those thoughts that are selfish... because fostercare has no place for selfishness.

It takes stubbornness to be a foster mom.

Which is a good thing, because I am all out of patience with this system.