I'm Having a Rant, Again

Foster kids don't deserve what they get, and they don't get what they deserve.

I'm sure I've said it before, and I know that I'll say it again. In fact, I plan to keep on saying it until people wake up.

I love that as Americans and Christians we feel compelled to save the world, and there has to be a balance of do-gooders running around. I'm the first to admit that. I also recognize that we all have different passions and hot topics.

Mine just happens to be kids.

So here's what I meant in that first statement.

Foster kids don't deserve what they get. The things that foster kids, or any abused kids, get at the hands of their so called care givers, birth parents or otherwise, is undeserved. No child ever does anything so bad or so wrong that they deserve this kind of abuse. These kids endure, and for the most part, survive things that we as relatively sane adults can't even imagine or comprehend. These are the sorts of things that make you sick to your stomach when it is detailed to you or worst of all see a photo of. Now consider bringing that into your home.

Next up, foster kids don't get what they deserve. Our American system really does try to help these kids, but it is a flawed system. Bringing them into a foster home or other treatment facility certainly removes them from the abuse, but is it giving them something they deserve? Most often not. There are lots of great foster families loving the snot out of these "damaged" kids, but they are so stigmatized in society, that it often just isn't enough. Most of these kids get the basic services they need, but they are still left hanging in the middle of adult disasters and have junk that follows them around for their entire lives.

Now I think it's just great that there are wonderful people who want to run around saving children in other countries from famine, disease, war and various other bad things. We need those people. But I also think we should take a look a little closer to home a little more often.

See there is a certain truth about kids in general, and it applies even to these "poor, abused" kids. They do one of two things. They die or they grow up. There is another certain thing going on here too. We will all keep on getting older or die. If we live, someday soon, these kids will be the grown ups surrounding us, holding the jobs, being the politicians, doctors and teachers.

If we continue to allow massive rampant, abuse of children in our society what can we look forward to as senior citizens? This is bigger even than just physical abuse too. Think for a moment about how our kids are suffering from woeful educations. Think about how many come out of homes with a parent or parents who have never had a long term or secure job. Think about kids who have been raised virtually without medical care because their families can't afford it. Think about the kids who think it is normal to eat less than three meals a day or who have never eaten fresh fruit or vegetables because the cost is too extravagant.

How can we possibly think any of this is going to work out well? How can we sit back in our loungers in front of our TVs year after year saying someone ought to do something? Isn't that what our politicians and activists are for?

Let me, not so gently, give you a news flash. You are the somebody who needs to get up and do the something. No one is saying you have to go out and be the next major saint or most notable philanthropist, but you sure do need to do something.

Something is always better than nothing.

And, as always, the small stuff counts big. Don't ever kid yourself that what you can do is too little to make a difference, it's not.

Will you see first hand the difference you make? Most cases, no, probably not. Do you know at the core of your soul that you've done something worth while and not wasted a lifetime sucking down soda and feeding your pleasures? Yeah, you probably will.

Is there the chance that if you get involved, if you actually get brave enough to hang yourself out there and do something, that it will wreck you? Absolutely. If there is anything to you, if you are a person who is deeper than a single ply tissue, there will be something in this life that will wreck you.

Once you begin, you will find it. There will come into your life that thing that has an injustice so great that you can't rest. You will do all you can within the bounds of sanity to bring about correction to this insane injustice.

Maybe your thing really is saving people in foreign countries, and may God bless your passion and dedication to correcting this injustice. But maybe it's not, and that's just an easy and convenient band wagon to jump on and write a check too. It's a popular, almost trendy cause these days. It's cool to take a short trip overseas to do your part in saving the world. If you can make yourself believe that it's your real passion, I'd challenge you to do a whole lot more.

My passion lies a whole lot closer to my front door. But you already knew that.