“Well, he’s such a precious little man and a brilliant little boy and a good problem-solver. He was on the streets for almost a year before we met. He was so brave to figure out how to survive. When I met him it was because he was brave enough to step in, get involved and help me get back my possessions.

It wasn’t hard to realize that we were meant to be together. Everything flowed between us from the moment we met. He was so concerned about me from the moment he handed me back my bag and did his best to comfort me as I sat there crying like a baby. I wasn’t sure how it was all going to work out but he was the one who set the stage for how we would be together.

We were sitting on the stoop of our apartment that first day after shopping for furniture. I was sitting sideways on the top landing with one leg stretched out in front of me while the other leg was bent with my foot down on the next stair. He was sitting by my foot and we were just chatting. He soon stood up and carefully moved over to sit on my lap.

Once situated there, sitting so that he could see the street, he leaned into me and started sharing his thoughts. He started by saying that he was too young to be an adult, and too young to get a job. Then he held my hand for a moment, like he was gathering his courage to ask me. Soon he stated that he thought it would be a better solution if I were the mom and he were the kid in our family.

All I could do was hold him close to me and kiss his head, sharing with him that I thought his idea was a good one. So, since that moment, he’s been my son. I went through the classes and meetings to become a Foster mom so that he could stay with me, and Peggy assisted me in finding my lawyer, Joyce, to help me initiate and then go through the process of adopting him. Our court date is December 23^rd. Hopefully the judge will grant me custody of him as the social worker we’ve had has given us good reports.