Diamond in the Rough

Recently some friends of ours went to Liberia to pick up their two boys from the AFAA house. It had been an extremely long adoption process for them, so it was so exciting that the boys finally got to come to their home in America. I've been thinking a lot about the journey that our own adoption has provided us. It definitely has not been easy. Even though I detest pregnancy, having your own biological child is far easier than adoptions--and it is especially less challenging than adopting an older child who has been abandoned time and time again. I know that when Diamond and Florence were at the orphanage there was a lot of corruption, the children were not getting fed properly and they were beaten with a stick regularly. So when Diamond and Florence arrived we faced all kinds of trials dealing with their anger and fear.

As challenging as it has been for me to take in traumatized children and assimilate them into our family, I can't even begin to imagine what it must have been like for Diamond and Florence. Starved, living in refugee camps, abandoned to an orphanage, beaten, abused in various ways, taken away by a stranger to a foreign land unlikely to return to their homeland in their lifetime. Man, what kind of courage does that take? These children must be some of God's bravest and most resilient little souls. When they're not being so noisy I feel my head will explode, I have this overwhelming admiration for their tenacity, faith and patience. As hard as this road has been for all of us, I can't imagine life any other way. I adore my African babies and I know it has always been in God's plan for them to come to our family.

Florence faces some severe learning challenges, but is blessed with a sweetness that is unmatch by any other child I have ever met. I have talked about that in past posts, so I would like to focus this post on Diamond. Diamond is seriously a prodigy child. He is absolutely remarkable in everything he does. Talent oozes out of his pores. Sometimes it is hard to contain all of his creativity (especially when it is a gargantuan mess all over my house).

Diamond is a fantastic artist for his age. He has a tendency to become absolutely obsessed with things. Right now it is Pokemon. He will draw the characters for hours and hours making his own Pokemon cards and doing battle with them. He creates things out of Legos that are ingenious. I feel that we are just scratching the surface of his artistic capabilities. I remember when I went to pick him up in Liberia, I gave him a notebook and pen and he sat forever drawing. He still does that, but now he needs crayons, markers, scissors, glue, tape and so on. They have put him in the gifted and talented program at school because of his immense creativity and artistic abilities.

Diamond is also a natural athlete. When I workout, he'll put on his Thai boxing shorts and his snow gloves and we do kick boxing together. He decided that my routine was a little boring, so he went and found a giant stuffed animal to punch the crap out of. He is VERY competitve and can run like a cheetah. We had to teach him not to trash talk everyone because he really likes to win and yell, "Oh, yeah! In yo face, sucka!"

More than anything Diamond loves to dance, sing, play piano (I often hear him composing his own songs when he's supposed to be practicing), and play drums. He is so unbelievably talented in all of them that we aren't sure which one is the most important to encourage first. He makes up these songs that are so ridiculous, we can't help but laugh. He has this one to the tune of a Taylor Swift song that he sings, "I was riding on a roller coaster when my mom called. She said, when are you coming home? I said, I'm on a ride, I'll call you later. When I got home my girlfriend dumped me, so I had post it all on facebook. . . " The thing is, he has got a really good voice. Chloe is a decent singer, but the rest of us stink. However, Diamond is honestly gifted in music. It's like it's in his blood, his joints, his brain, every part of him.

But, I think it is the dancing where he shines the most. One night our family was at the Hill Top, which is a club on Camp Walker. They had karaoke and Diamond asked to sing Beat It by Michael Jackson. He sang and danced until everyone in the joint was screaming and clapping. The manager came out and gave him a certificate for a free pizza because he was such an entertainer.

The other night we were downtown and went to what is called the Disco Pong Pong. It is a ride that is a giant disc where people sit. The ride plays music and it spins and bounces the people around. The older kids wanted to go on it with some friends for family night. We went down there and while Diamond was watching the older kids on the ride, he decided to get up and start dancing to the music. He was so good that they stopped the ride so everyone could watch him. There was video of it that was being streamed out on the street, so people started crowding into the building. Pretty soon, the place was standing room only. A Korean boy about 19 or 20 came up to Diamond and challenged him to a dance off. So for 20 minutes they dueled with dancing while people screamed and cheered. Afterward, Brian paid Diamond five bucks for being awesome and all the 21 year old Korean girls were coming up to Diamond and asking him if he had a girlfriend.

Diamond also is really into telling jokes lately. He and his friend Addyson, sit around and try to think of funny jokes. They are rarely, if ever, funny. What's funny is how terrible his jokes are! The times that Diamond is the funniest is when he's not really trying to be. The following are some posts I put on facebook to help me remember all the funny things Diamond comes up with.

Today at school Diamond and a little girl were playing a game where they told jokes that would make the other person "gasp" instead of laugh. Diamond said, "Yo mama's so fat she sat on a rainbow and skittles came out." The little girl laughed, but Diamond's teacher "gasped" and sent him to the principal's office for bullying.
The principal listened to Diamond repeat what he had said to the little girl, and then Diamond said, "she said to tell nice jokes and then she turned around and started laughing."

My conversation with Diamond at breakfast:
Me: Diamond, you stink, honey, have you not been wearing your deodorant?
Diamond: I just barely licked my armpit and it tasted like deodorant, so I must've put it on.

The kids only got a couple small surprises for Christmas today, but apparently it was sufficient for Diamond because he said, "This was awesome. I'm going to my room to play--I'll be out next Christmas!"

Diamond hiking through the jungle said to Brian: I can't die on this trip, Dad. I need to live so I can get married. I can't let you and Mom have all the fun.

During the dinner prayer Diamond said, "And please help us that when we're on the airplane we won't get ploggy ears."

A conversation overheard at the kids' school:
Diamond: Yeah, you have a big head, but my balls are as big as this room.
Little girl: No they're not!! They're only this big . . . (holds her hand about 18 inches apart).
I'm glad she knocked his ego down to size!

Diamond is a little star. He and I hit heads occasionally, but I am so proud of my son. Occasionally, I wonder where he would be if he were still in Africa, how much of his amazing potential would never be discovered. How he wouldn't have access to any of the lessons, sports, art supplies or programs that have exposed his remarkable natural talents. Diamond is also my hardest worker and my most reliable child. Because of all of this, I know that someday he will do great things.

I am so thankful that Brian and I had the resources to bring him and Florence to our family so they could have opportunities that would never have been afforded them otherwise. I know that not only has Diamond's life been blessed, but we have been so blessed to have these little prodigies in our home (Florence is a prodigy of kindness :). I know that Diamond and Florence have made me a better mother and a better woman. I watch these videos and I feel so lucky to be their mom!