Not really much to say…

A Belated Merry Christmas to everyone – I meant to do a post and then forgot.  Hoping your celebrations were the way you wanted them.  Mine were perfect, low key and with the people I wanted to see and spend time with.  Of course, I would have loved to meet up with people who I only know on-line but…

Having said that – the weather sucked.  We had snow a week before Christmas and I had my fingers crossed, and then rain, rain, and more rain.  The picture at the end of the post, while not the best, shows what one of the squirrels thought of it too.

Now to add the adoption bit into the post.  I was reading the NCFA documents that are part of their “birthparent” counselling package.  Many of them disturbed me, but this made me scratch my head.  Below is the blurb at the top of the formerly called “Positive Adoption Language” now called “Accurate Adoption Language“…who can keep up with all these changes – hey?

Words not only convey facts, they also evoke feelings. For example, when a TV show or movie contains language about a “custody battle” between “real parents” and “other parents,” this reinforces the inaccurate notion that only birth parents are real parents and that adoptive parents aren’t real parents. Members of society may also wrongly conclude that all adoptions are “battles.”

Accurate adoption language can stop the spread of misconceptions such as these. By using accurate language, we educate others about adoption. We choose emotionally “correct” words over emotionally laden words. We speak and write in appropriate adoption language with the hope of influencing others so that this language will someday become the norm.

Under the Acceptable column is: Person / Individual who was adopted

Under the Less Acceptable column is: Adoptee

And of course “was adopted” is Acceptable, and “is adopted” is Less Acceptable.

So using the term “Person / Individual who was adopted” for myself, will stop the spread of misconceptions such as what?  That I am an adopted?  I am.

I’m missing the connection between my identifying as an “Adoptee” and emotionally laden words.  It’s a term. I do know that writing out “Person / Individual who was adopted” will not be on my list of New Year’s Resolutions.  Adoptees should be free to use whatever terminology suits them.  Not what some group of “People / Individuals who were not adopted” want us to use.

And what’s with the use of three different “A Words”: Accurate, Acceptable, Appropriate?  Couldn’t get a consensus on which was the right – less emotionally laden term?

Anyway – have a Safe & Happy New Year – if I don’t talk to you before then…

Now the picture of the wet squirrel – and don’t judge the picture quality – it was taken from inside the kitchen with a flash it was such a dreary grey and rainy day.