Lately I seem to be surrounded by people having babies. In my family there have been two little girls born in the last month and three little boys are due in the next few weeks.
As I look at these families, the make up of them is all different. On baby will be born to a married couple with two other little ones. Both of the girls were born to moms who are in a relationship with the father but are unmarried. One will be born to a single mother with a four year old and the last will be a first baby for a married couple.
These are all families. Traditional or not, they are families. There is no difference in the amount of love that waits for these babies. The single mother may be a little more stressed out about how she is going to manage with two kids, but she is eagerly awaiting the arrival of her little boy. So is her family. He will be surrounded by people who love him. It may not be traditional, but he will be loved.
Isn’t love the most important thing we can give our children? Saying that kids need to be raised in a certain family structure just adds to the pain and sorrow of a woman who lost her husband while she was pregnant or a man who’s wife walks out because she can’t handle being a mother.
Those children are not doomed. As long as they are born into love, they are a step ahead of so many children in the world. Extended families can’t take the place of the absent parent but they can ease the burden for the parent left behind, and give the child a different perspective on things.
Don’t say our kids can’t make it. As long as we love them and make decisions out of our love for them, our kids can move mountains.