Resources - Children's Pages

February 2002

The Foster Kid

Mrs. Anne Groenenboom
Anne is a retired school teacher from Cobden (Vic)


As Chris came in with blood streaming down his face, Amy screamed, “Mum! Come quickly! Chris has blood all over him!”

Chris was a sorry sight, with his nose bleeding and gashes on his hands and knees. His shirt was torn and his glasses were bent crooked. Mum helped Chris to a chair on the verandah. She told Amy to get a box of tissues, then sent her for a dish of water and a towel. Grandma and Grandpa came out with an ice pack to put on the back of Chris’s neck.

Finally the bleeding stopped and as Mum cleaned Chris up, she asked what had happened.

“That kid down the road... the one with the red hair... he hit me!” Chris explained. “I was going past his house and he was at the gate, so I said hello and he started pushing me around and asking me silly questions. I tried to ignore him, the way you’ve told me, but when I didn’t answer, he started punching me and he pushed me over! Then someone yelled at him and he ran off.”

“Are you sure you didn’t say anything to upset him?” Grandma asked, but Chris shook his head.

Dad was mowing the grass out the front, so he hadn’t heard the commotion, but when he came round to cut the back lawn, he realised that something was wrong. He came up the steps just in time to hear Chris telling his story.

“At our Neighbourhood Watch meeting, we were told to call the police, if anyone attacked us.” Grandpa suggested.

“Maybe we should find out why he attacked Chris,” Dad replied. “Then we can decide how to deal with the problem. Do you know this boy, Chris?”

Chris shook his head. “I’ve seen him a couple of times this week, riding his bike. I don’t think he’s been here very long.”

Mrs Pratley, their neighbour, was looking over the fence to see what all the fuss was about.

“His name is Aaron and he just came to live with the Hogans,” she told them. “The Hogans are very nice people but they’re having a lot of trouble with him. He has a dreadful temper and he won’t do a thing they tell him! You should call the police!”

“I’ll have a talk with Mr Hogan,” Dad remarked. “Perhaps we can sort this out without involving the police.” Dad found the Hogans’ number in the phone book and spent some time talking with Mr Hogan. Chris heard his father say, “Right, I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

Dad explained to the family that the Hogans had been fostering Aaron for just over a week.

“What does that mean?” Amy asked and Dad replied, “It usually happens when a child’s parents are unable to look after the child properly for some reason or another, so a new home is found for him. Some foster children have been living in terrible circumstances and they often behave badly because they are very angry about what’s happened to them. Aaron has been in five foster homes over the past year, before coming to the Hogans, but nobody has wanted to keep him because he behaves so badly. The Hogans are desperate to help him, but he won’t have anything to do with them, he just shouts and screams and ignores them all the time.”

Chris thought about what his father had said. How dreadful it would be, to be taken away from your parents, to live with strangers! And wouldn’t it be awful if nobody wanted you at all! Just imagine having no family and no friends! Chris suddenly decided that he’d try and help Aaron.

“Dad, is it OK if I come with you? I’d like to try to make friends with Aaron.”
“Sure,” Dad replied. “I’m glad that you can be so forgiving, Chris. Let’s pray about it before we go.” They prayed together, then set out for the Hogans’ house.

Chris felt a bit scared as Dad knocked on the Hogans’ door, because he wasn’t sure how things would work out. When Mr Hogan took them in to the lounge room, he apologised to them for the way Aaron had behaved.

“I don’t know what we’re going to do with that boy!” he commented. “We want to give him a secure, loving home but he won’t let us get near him. We’ve tried to talk to him and reassure him, but that doesn’t work either. He just shouts and screams at us, then storms outside.”

“Have you tried praying about it?” Dad asked and Mr Hogan stared at him in surprise.

“No, I didn’t think of that. I’m not sure I’d know how to pray... and besides, God wouldn’t bother listening to me, because I’ve never prayed to him before. I know that God is up there somewhere, but I just wouldn’t know what to say to him.”

“Just because you haven’t prayed before doesn’t mean that you can’t start now. God listens to everyone’s prayers, “ Dad replied. “Just put your trust in him to show you what to do.”

Mr Hogan still looked very doubtful.

Would you like me to pray about Aaron?” Dad asked gently and Mr Hogan nodded. They sat with bowed heads while Dad asked the Lord to be with the Hogans and especially with Aaron. He prayed for wisdom and strength for Mr and Mrs Hogan as they dealt with Aaron and he asked that that Aaron’s fears might be relieved and his anger would be taken away. He also asked the Lord to help Chris, so that he and Aaron would become friends.

Mr Hogan looked at Dad with amazement. “You sound as if you really know God. I’d like to know him as well as you do and be able to talk to him like that! What can I do to know him better?”

“You have to believe in Jesus Christ as God’s son and your Saviour,” Dad replied. ”Would you like me to come and talk with you sometime, about knowing and loving Jesus?”

“I certainly would... and I think my wife would like that too. Anyway, let’s go and see what we can do about Aaron.”

“Would you mind if Chris spoke to him first?” Dad asked. Mr Hogan looked rather surprised but he replied, “I’m willing to try anything that might help.”

Mr Hogan led them through to the family room, where Mrs Hogan and the children were watching TV. Chris saw Aaron sitting scrunched up in a corner with an angry look on his face. When Aaron saw Chris, his face went red. Mr Hogan introduced Dad and Chris to his family and explained what had happened. Aaron put his head down on his chest and refused to look at them but Chris could see that he was trembling. Chris went over and sat on the floor beside Aaron, but the boy didn’t look up, even when Chris spoke to him softly.

“My name’s Chris and I’d like to be your friend.”

“Don’t think you’re going to trick me into saying I’m sorry, because I’m not!” Aaron growled. “Just leave me alone! I don’t want to talk to you!”

“Well, I want to talk to you, Aaron, so I’ll just sit here until you’re ready to talk to me,” Chris replied quietly.

“Why?” Aaron asked angrily.

“Because I’d like to help you.”

“Nobody ever wants to help me!” Aaron mumbled. “I don’t need anyone’s help!”

“That’s not true, Mr and Mrs Hogan want to help you and we do too. Why don’t you want us to help you?” Chris asked.

“Lots of people have promised to help me, but they never do. They just send me away all the time... to someone else who doesn’t want me!”

“That’s not true this time, Aaron. I’m sure Mr and Mrs Hogan want you to be part of their family, otherwise they wouldn’t have asked to have you.“

“I don’t believe you! They only want me for the money they get for having me... or else they want me to do all the work, like the last three places I was at, “ Aaron retorted. “They don’t want me to be a real part of their family, no matter what they say!”

“Why don’t you give them a chance to show you that they want you?” Chris suggested. “And don’t forget that I want you to be my friend.”

“You want to be friends with me, even after I bashed you up?” Aaron asked Chris.

“We’ve only just moved here too so I don’t know the kids round here yet,” Chris replied. “We can help each other settle in, without needing to fight, can’t we?”

Aaron nodded rather reluctantly. He stood up and went over to where the Hogans were sitting.

“I’m sorry I’ve been so rude to you. If you really want me, I’ll try to be better from now on.”

Mrs Hogan, with tears streaming down her face, hugged Aaron and Mr Hogan shook his hand as he said, “We hope you’ll be very happy in our family Aaron. Kids, come and meet your new big brother!”

Aaron grinned at Chris and said, “Now I’m going to do all that I can to be part of this family... and I’m going to be a good friend to you, Chris.”

 

SOMETHING TO DO

Look around you at school and see if there is someone there who finds it very hard to get on with other people. Pray that God will help you to make friends with that person. You may have to try very hard but it’s worth the effort. Learn to show Jesus’ love to the people you don’t get along with. That’s hard too, but if you pray about it, you’ll be able to do it.

 

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