[reason 131] when things happen

When my 20-something year old child asked if a friend could stay with us for a while because they're not safe at home, I said of course ... and they said they already told their friend to come and the friend was already on their way.

When you assure the friend that they're welcome to stay as long as they need and that we'll make a space for them in our little house and that our food is their food, and our supplies are theirs, and they are now part of our family if they'll have us, and they don't seem too sure that this is real...you keep saying it until their heart understands.

When your new bonus child asks if we can go to the thrift store, but also says they don't want to be a bother, you mention thrift store to your other children and enthusiastically head there after dinner. And when your new bonus child reluctantly asks if we can swing by their former residence to pick up their stuff which has been piled outside, you say absolutely, but we'll need a bigger vehicle. Then you call your husband and he drives to the thrift shop to switch out vehicles while we're shopping and you go collect the bags and boxes that contain the material sum of this human being's former existence - minus some items which their "family" members decided to keep for themselves - ready for things to go downhill quickly, doing your best to make sure everyone's safe in the process.

When you realize there's garbage in the bags along with belongings, your heart breaks even more for this young adult. And when you point out the bedframe that will soon be the base of their bed, their response makes you keenly aware of just how much this precious human being was treated more like garbage than the precious person they are.