You feel that nudge, that thing inside you that makes you do a Google search. You see the statistics, maybe even see some photos of precious faces just waiting to be adopted or fostered. You stay up late researching. The next day, you mention it to your partner. Will they be on board? After some long conversations, they agree that this is a good idea, that you’ll be doing something amazing for your community by opening up your home to kids who need a place to feel safe and loved.
So you figure out the next steps: request some basic info, attend orientation, show up to training, and complete the seemingly never-ending list of background checks, physicals, and requirements to become certified foster parents.
Then you wait. The waiting feels endless. Some get a call in the middle of the night and their world flips on its head as a 3-year-old shows up with a case worker, scared, tired, and just wanting a snack. For others, the call might take weeks or even months; eventually, there will be a call. You will be called on to fulfill your duty as a foster parent, and then the doubts will creep in.
We’re not qualified. What were we thinking? This child needs someone better than us. What if we do x wrong? What if they don’t like our house? What if we can’t get them the resources they need?
The fear starts to take over and suddenly you’re questioning it all.
See, you’ll never actually be ready to be a foster parent. No one is. Anyone who tells you they are is either lying or naive. Every foster parent struggles with self-doubt and hesitations and a lack of self-confidence, but these are the people who are actually ready deep down.
You will encounter a strength and presence of mind in the midst of chaos that you’ve likely never tapped into before. Life may not have required you to see what you were made of up to this point. But now? Now there’s a child looking up at you, or maybe avoiding eye contact, who desperately needs to feel safe and loved. And you, the unprepared, nervous wreck, will become their world.
You will have the opportunity to take care of their needs. You will be given that huge responsibility of helping them thrive in the midst of appointments, therapies, court dates, and a whole host of other things to fill up every minute of the day. You will get to hold them, snuggle them, and feed them their favorite snack. You get to do this. Not anyone else. You’re up for it. You can do this. We believe in you.
No, you won’t ever truly be ready, but when it happens and you’re faced with the reality of a middle of the night call, you will rise to the occasion and be the powerful, amazing foster parent we know you can be.
If you’re ready to be a foster parent Oklahoma, contact us at TfI Family today for more information. We’d love to answer any questions you may have.