What is?
National Adoption Awareness Month, that’s what. Or wait. No. It’s not a misnomer. It’s named properly; it’s just applied incorrectly. Or something.
Main Entry: aware
Pronunciation: \ə-ˈwer\
Function: adjective
Etymology: Middle English iwar, from Old English gewær, from ge- (associative prefix) + wær wary — more at co-, wary
Date: before 12th century
1archaic : watchful, wary
2: having or showing realization, perception, or knowledge
— aware·ness noun
Nowhere in the words aware or awareness is celebration implied.
However, I’m not naive enough to think that the folks who implemented National Adoption Awareness Month meant to present complete awareness of the month, of the good and bad, of everything that is involved in adoption.
Nope. I know that National Adoption Awareness Month may as well be named National Adoption Celebration Month. That would be more honest anyways.
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That’s not the way I do things though. I always have been somewhat of a rebel. Heh.
As some of you know, I’m a librarian at a regional campus of a university and part of my job is to create displays for “Month of ——-” or “_____ Awareness Month,” “______ Heritage/History Month.” I have been putting up displays in the past for National Adoption Awareness Month, but much more in the spirit of the true meaning of awareness, showing the various sides — positive and negative — and trying to present a balanced view of adoption, not just the shiny, happy face of adoption. In other words, covers to titles like The Girls Who Went Away and Adoption Politics: Bastard Nation and Ballot Initiative 58 are displayed alongside titles like Meeting Sophie: A Memoir of Adoption and The Family of Adoption.
Positive. Negative. In-between. A balanced viewpoint. That’s what I try to cover.
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Which brings me to A REQUEST:
If any first mom, adoptee, or adoptive parent has any piece of writing or photograph — or both — that I might be able to include in my display for the month, could you please email me and let me know? I know this is last minute — I thought of it awhile back, then thought maybe it would be imposing, then today thought I’d go ahead and ask and the worst people could do was say, “NO!!”
I think those kinds of personal stories would really help people understand the world of adoption much better, enhance the display, and for the future, perhaps somehow (I’m not sure in what way yet) help with some aspect of working towards reform. At the least, it will begin some kind of small compilation of voices of adoption.
If anyone already has something like that written — preferably with some description of what it is and who they are — please let me know and let me know if you can email the text to me.
Thank you ever so much.
What I’m thinking aren’t big pro or con pieces, but things like the beautiful Free Write that Suz wrote today. Something that people might be able to relate to, that paints a picture of a part of someone’s life as a first mom, an adoptee, an adoptive parent, positive or negative, or a combination of both. If it’s way out there — on either side (i.e. “adoption is the most evil thing in the world” or “adoption is the best thing in the world) — I’m sorry but I won’t be able to use it. I don’t expect anything like that, but I’m just sayin’ . . . .
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National Adoption Awareness Month.
I’m aware. Of quite a bit, anyways; maybe not of everything that goes on in adoption. I probably still have some learning to do. But I am aware, in the real sense of the word.
Now let’s raise the awareness of some other people.
