The next time a snowflake lands on your face, consider the many ways it’s just like your foster child.
You don’t have to take a deep dive to come up with the basics. That they’re both delicate and fragile. Or that they’re simply beautiful. And they’re unique, one of a kind—each one comes in a different shape and size. No two are ever the same.
But that’s just scratching the surface. A little meteorology lesson will uncover some other fascinating similarities.
A snowflake starts out as a speck of dirt. As it’s swept into the atmosphere by wind, it travels through different temperatures and moisture levels, attaching to frozen ice crystals. During its journey to earth, the ice crystals change, develop, and grow. Each beautifully complex snowflake is made up an accumulation of ice crystals—from two to 200—that latch on as the dirt particle travels toward the earth.
Some believe most foster kids come from “dirt” or “dirt-poor” families. We know they’re swept into the system, where they travel from home to home, experience to experience. They change, grow, and evolve. During their “travels,” they take with them different parts of the foster home, foster parents, foster siblings, group homes, teachers, CASAs, and GALs. All engrave lasting impressions on their lives.
Ice crystals continue to clump together around a dirt particle until there are no more atmospheric changes in temperature and humidity. A snowflake does not arrive at its final true beauty until it has finished its trip through some hostile conditions…when there is stability in the atmosphere.
Foster kids are made up of experiences—both good and bad—that have shaped their complex lives. They don’t reach their true “beauty” until they find strength and steadiness in their lives.
Snowflakes are very cold, but over time and under the right conditions, as they warm up, they begin to melt.
Similar to snowflakes, foster kids may be cold when they land in a new foster home; but over time, in the right conditions, they warm up to the foster family and some of the chill melts away.
Sometimes snowflakes turn out to be a nuisance. Think snow shovel and sore back. Or your car sliding off the road in frozen slush.
Let’s be real. Sometimes foster children are just plain annoying. Loud, disobedient, and unruly. Impulsive and violent. Inconsiderate and selfish. You know the drill.
But quite often, snowflakes are delightful and magical, even inspiring. Think snow angels and toboggans. A blanket of white diamonds on an evergreen.
It’s a wonderful thing to get a glimpse of a foster kid brimming with love, life, and hope. Yes, it’s a magical moment.
This winter, whenever you spot snowflakes, pause for a moment and consider the long game. Keep pouring out love, patience, discipline, and affirmation on your foster kids, and one day they’ll bring dazzling beauty to the world!
