The Stepping Stones Of Adoption

By Fiona Wells
Preamble: Setting The Stage
This isn’t a straight or predictable path, but a series of uneven, unpredictable stepping stones.
Each of us steps on different stones—some hit many, others few—and for many, the journey is marked by loss, shattered hopes, and moments of despair.
Lives are often broken, and we find ourselves in places we never planned or wished for—places that feel hopeless.
Life fights against us. Even the things that should support and scaffold us end up fighting us back.
We began believing resilience, love, and strength would be enough.
But instead, we find ourselves clinging to broken, frayed vines—leaves hanging on a cliff—unsure if we have the strength to continue.
We’re caught in a space where we don’t want to fail, but we’re exhausted and uncertain if we can hold on.
For some, the journey ends prematurely—cut short before hope can even take root.
For others, it never really ends—a constant battle with no clear resolution.
And sometimes, we’re left on the edge, damaged forever, clutching to the cliff face, unsure if we’ll ever find solid ground again.
There are those who skim past the chaos, surviving on fragments—doing okay, managing to get by, holding on just enough, without hope of more.
The Journey in Visual Metaphors
1. Dreams of Parenthood
A delicate soap bubble shimmering in the sunlight — fragile hopes and aspirations, beautiful but easily disturbed.
2. The Prepared Heart
An open hand extended, bathed in gentle light — education, readiness, standing with heart and arms wide open, eager to embrace love.
3. The Honeymoon Glow
A radiant sunrise over calm waters — idyllic beginnings, hope and joy at their peak.
4. Small Bumps in the Road
Two threads tangling or fraying — minor challenges, moments of tension that seem manageable.
5. The Life Falls Off a Cliff
A sudden fall of a leaf or a stone plummeting into an abyss — upheaval, chaos, life shifting unexpectedly.
6. Hiding Behind a Wall of Roses
An ornate, thorny wall concealing a vulnerable heart — avoidance, masking pain behind beauty and comfort.
7. Preparing for Battle
A guardian figure cloaked in armor, with a shield of imagination and hope — fighting for recovery, fierce protector of all possibilities.
8. Cracks in the Foundation
A tree with roots showing through a broken sidewalk — fragility, vulnerabilities exposed.
9. The Walls Collapse
A crumbling fortress or walls tumbling down — defences fall, raw emotion exposed.
10. The Alarm Bells Ring
A storm warning siren or lighthouse beam piercing fog — urgent signals, crisis looming.
11. Rollercoaster of Emotions
A rollercoaster track twisting through storm clouds — highs of love and lows of fear, chaos and hope intertwined.
12. Doubt and Self-Questioning
A mirror shattering, then slowly reforming — questions of worth, identity in flux.
13. Guilt and Self-Degradation
Dark clouds overshadowing a small, trembling seedling — feelings of inadequacy, internal storm.
14. Advocacy as a Fortress
An intricate, glowing web of roots supporting a tree — all-consuming focus on being everything for the child.
15. The Emotional Wall
An opaque barrier shimmering with light — emotional exhaustion, self-protection.
16. The Terror Zone
Dark, swirling clouds with distant lightning — overwhelming fear and anxiety.
17. The Eggshell Path
A fragile path of cracked eggshells — walking carefully around vulnerabilities.
18. The Collision
Two tectonic plates colliding or a shattered mirror — crisis moments, shattering illusions.
19. The Cliff Edge
A lone figure teetering on the precipice — on the verge of despair, uncertainty.
20. The Grand Canyon
A vast chasm stretching into the horizon — deep emotional emptiness, insurmountable distance.
21. The Yo-Yo of Hope and Despair
A yo-yo bouncing between hands — fluctuating feelings, cyclical challenges.
22. Drop into the Volcano
A flowing lava river, transforming everything in its path — life-changing upheaval, transformation through fire.
23. Flames of Pain
An intense blaze consuming the landscape — doubt, shame, anger, and guilt burning within.
24. An Unexpected Space — Being Enough
An overgrown, wild garden or a tree with unusual branches — unplanned growth, imperfect yet resilient, embodying a space where what has emerged is enough, even if it wasn’t what was originally envisioned.
New Stage: The Worn but Still Here
An old, weathered tree or structure, cracked and frayed, but still rooted or in place — battered by the storm, scarred and frayed, not because they chose to stand, but because they somehow managed to stay. It’s not about strength or resilience; it’s about survival, chance, and simply being here, carrying the marks of what’s been endured.