So why are you going to Africa?

"So why are you going to Liberia?", people ask me.

"It's a tourist mecca, don't yah know. A real travel hot-spot ", I say.

... "No really. Why?"

The real reason is to make a difference in the life of one child. One family... In reality, adopting a child from a Liberian orphanage impacts the lives of many people,... the whole "village" in essence.

Certainly the most direct benefit is to the life of one child, one "Prince", giving that child a chance for a life that he would other-wise never have. This alone is reason enough.

***** "One hundred years from now, It will not matter what kind of car I drove, What kind of house I lived in, Or how much money I had in the bank, But the world may be a better place because I made a difference in a child's life." --- Author Unknown *****

However the family and "village" aspect is equally as strong. When you bring an adopted child into a family and community, particularly when that child is from a war-torn, international, poor country, you also dramatically affect all those people who come into contact with that child. Their world, their culture, and their values are impacted. Their eyes open wide to the broader world out there and their lives change. Forever.

I like to believe that these eye-opening changes and cultural impacts are educational, enriching and ultimately breed awareness, tolerance and peace. It does for me. And I hope for others and future generations as well.

-=H=-