At dinner last night we were discussing adoption reform (gasp) brought about by a conversation my husband had with a co-worker regarding the cost of adopting both domestically and internationally and what a huge part money plays in perpetuating the current dysfunctional system.
My daughter turned to me and asked “Mommy, if I needed to be adopted how much would I cost?”
O.U.C.H.
It was difficult to explain that the way our society currently operates a ten year old would have very little monetary value and yet somehow assure her that says nothing about her true worth. I wanted to explain that you cannot put a price on a child but that is not accurate as things stand. That is not the truth.
My 10 year old understands that we have become a society which has placed a monetary value on human beings and much like the purchase of a car the newer the model the more expensive the merchandise. I wonder why that fact seems difficult for so many adults to grasp?
What we do…it’s not OK. I can only hope our children will learn from our mistakes and as adults make better choices than we are making.
3 Comments
March 30, 2008 at 5:17 pm
And that is why my wife and I probably will never “purchase” a child. We are currently foster-to-adopt parents of a boy and girl, ages 3 & 4. There are many changes that does need to take place in the adoption world. In my opinion, there’s just no real direction on where and how to make them.
It’s awesome that your daughter does recognize that. It opens so many doors in teaching children that a human being shouldn’t have a monetary value.
April 1, 2008 at 9:49 pm
Well, according to humanforsale.com, my pricetag is $1.54 million. It’s kind of low because of the smoking and the addictive personality.
I’m not putting myself back up for adoption though, even though I’m bargain basement price.
The money is out of control. The fact that a whole series of home equity line of credit advertisements can be made simply to finance an adoption is so horrid. Also in light of the number of foreclosures, it’s scary too.
April 6, 2008 at 10:29 pm
It’s as if human beings are in a mode of reverse inflation…as we age our market price decreases – all I can say to that is OUCH.
I often think of the $50 my biological father was paid to give me up and the several thousand my mother spent to bring me to life…is this what it really boils down to???