Welcome to the Scooter Gang

*Sarah and *Hannah are here, my daughter announced excitedly as if she’d been waiting for them to come for a long time. But the truth was that nobody knew that they were coming until a few days before, and my daughter had no clue at all. That’s because Sarah and Hannah are foster children. But that’s a normal thing on our little block. There are 4 families with foster children on our block now. Some children will stay long time, some stay as forever family, and others come and stay for a while and then are reunified with family.

We also have a LOT of children under ten on our block. We affectionately refer to them as the scooter gang as they are out from dawn ‘til dusk riding scooters and bikes up and down the street all day. They rotate between our houses, popping in for drinks or snacks like our homes are just extensions of each other’s. And it was to this little club that Sarah (who was old enough to play outside while her little sister is still a bit too young) was welcomed with open arms. You are one of us now, their happy greetings let her know. A part of the scooter gang with no hard questions - just a place to belong.

Today, one of the moms on the block texted to tell us that the kids came in worried because Sarah used the F word. And her answer was perfect. Sometimes when kids come from hard places, they learn some not so good things along the way. And while it’s ok to tell her that we don’t use that language, we can also extend grace. And she went on to explain what grace was.

I know that it might seem scary to some to be living downtown and to have a constant influx of children that have been through horrors playing with my kids. What kind of influence might they have? What terrible experiences might they share? But I see it as an incredible gift to my children - to be surrounded by examples of Christ’s love for the most helpless among us on a daily basis and to see it as a normal part of life. To learn what grace is and that we all need it and we all need to extend it. To have many “moms” to speak into their hearts and lives. And what a gift to the children who come to our little block, whether it be for a short time, or for the rest of their lives - just to hear “you’re here - you’re part of our club now.”

So on this weekend of honoring mothers, I honor the ones right on my street, who are fighting hard battles for children who don’t have another to fight for them. And not only that but who welcome the scooter gang to witness it all first hand.
*Names changed for privacy