“HURRY UP and WAIT“ & a FB post

HURRY UP and WAIT.  We saw a facebook post this week...

When I was stationed in Iraq with the US Army and had been there for about 10 months, it was my turn to go home for two weeks for “R&R”.  I do not recall if my family was expecting a certain day for me to arrive home or not, but I do recall that I arrived on time for my flight… and then it was postponed for hours, and then a day, and then after three days of relaxing on the warm concrete floor of a hanger, I was able to catch a flight home to see my family for two weeks before returning back to Iraq for another five months. It wasn’t a big deal. You learn to go with the flow when it’s fast and when it’s slow. Life is just like that sometimes. Yet, there is a reason that the army is known for the phrase, “Hurry up and wait.“  I’m sure there are many factors that go into it, and none of that really matters, so I am grateful that one of the skills I learned in my tenure with the military was to be relaxed when waiting.

Yesterday, my wife showed me a Facebook post from our adoption closed group. It had a picture of two girls and one boy: a sibling group of three children waiting for a family willing to take..… “so many children.”   As we understand it, most families want to adopt only one or two children. Maybe that’s because of the media mindset of the “American Dream” (A&D intentionally capitalized because our society has made it such)… one dream career, one spouse, one house, one boy, one girl, one or two dogs, a well groomed yard and a white picket fence.   Almost makes me ill thinking of it all.  Our life has been: one eternal spouse, a growing family with no specific limitations, making income where possible, learn and grow because that’s what life’s about, never saying no to opportunity, and calling any place we can reside and cherish each other our home....and the guinea pig was nice to have with us.  That’s OUR dream.  Anyway, the picture pricked the heart of my wife. I’m not sure how to describe what it did to my heart. Yet, I know I saw the picture and felt love.  I felt like I would happily take them into our home and call them my daughters and my son. And I felt that my family would easily do the same.

Apparently adoption is very different today than it was just decades ago. We have friends and acquaintances who have experiences when they went to an orphanage and said they would adopt this one now or they would adopt that one or both, and it was a done deal in a day or a weekend.  I’m not sure why the process is so lengthy now, but I like to believe that it is out of necessity to keep the children safe because human trafficking is so rampant in the world today. If that is the case, it is worth the wait. Our friends and family know us well, and the adoption agency has gotten to know us, but everyone else still needs to verify that we are who we say we are.  

So, whatever the reason is, here we are looking at a picture of three children in Haiti waiting to be adopted, and the organization not wanting to break the sibling group up. There’s more siblings in this world, and the agency says there’s a couple in the works right now through them. As we understand it, this one is an example. So, here we are, our hearts longing to bring our children home. We hurry and do our part as best we can by preparing our minds and lifestyle as well as that of our children and even our employees, and we wait.

Patiently waiting with open hearts and open arms.

Post-blog request: 

Please follow our page ("bookmark" it on your browser or subscribe via blogger to get email updates).  When you feel inclined to bless us with your story, your words of encouragement, or anything else good, please comment.  If our adventures may help you or someone you know, please share our blog with them.  We are also happily accepting donations.  To help us financially, we have the following options:
A. Venmo "Millie-Hoggan" or 
B. Mailed Check made out to "Hoggan Handfuls Adoption Benefit Account" and mailed to Alpine Bank (Mail to 82 Sipprelle Dr, Battlement Mesa, CO 81636) 
C. Walk-in cash donations at Alpine Banks in Colorado to the "Hoggan Handfuls Adoption Benefit Account".  
We understand you can only give so much financially each month to causes you support.  If you can’t help us now, but want to, we ask that you think of us and our mission the next time you can give financial support to someone.  
Regardless of how you participate in our efforts to raise our little tribe, we appreciate the prayers, the kind words, and uplifting stories shared by so many!  May your loving kindness come full circle in your life.  

With much love, 

The Hoggan's

Suicide

Learning about the realities of teen suicide with Mills.  Some may think it’s better to avoid learning about it. We politely and respectfully disagree.  One of my friends ended his life as a teen when it appeared he had it all: lots of friends, well liked, loving family, athletic stud, smart, and girls adored him.  I obviously don’t know the whole story.  Does anyone?  Ever?  

It’s a real concern.  Mills and I both work with youth at church and sometimes have the privilege to mentor other teens in our community as they come to us for advice or love.  Mills and I are both going through our own constant journeys of change and progression.  This education is another step.  It never hurts to gain more knowledge.  It never hurts to question our own methods of living: for ourselves, for our marriage, for our kids and family unit as a whole, and especially for our tribe/community as a whole.  Consideration, reflection, and change: some key factors to success in life.  

Adoption doesn’t mean suicide is more or less likely.  Every life has stress.  Even for the people like ourselves that seem to have it all together and “have it all”, stress is real.  Love and understanding are keys to success in overcoming stress.  

In the end, we are all family.  We all have the privilege and responsibility of sharing love with each other.  Millie and I feel inspired with the privilege and responsibility to adopt, to concentrate our love to bring in a few more kids to our home.  We came across this quote and it brings joy to our hearts!

Post-blog request: 

Please follow our page ("bookmark" it on your browser or subscribe via blogger to get email updates).  When you feel inclined to bless us with your story, your words of encouragement, or anything else good, please comment.  If our adventures may help you or someone you know, please share our blog with them.  We are also happily accepting donations.  To help us financially, we have the following options:

A. Venmo "Millie-Hoggan" or 

B. Mailed Check made out to "Hoggan Handfuls Adoption Benefit Account" and mailed to Alpine Bank (Mail to 82 Sipprelle Dr, Battlement Mesa, CO 81636) 

C. Walk-in cash donations at Alpine Banks in Colorado to the "Hoggan Handfuls Adoption Benefit Account".  

We understand you can only give so much financially each month to causes you support.  If you can’t help us now, but want to, we ask that you think of us and our mission the next time you can give financial support to someone.  

Regardless of how you participate in our efforts to raise our little tribe, we appreciate the prayers, the kind words, and uplifting stories shared by so many!  May your loving kindness come full circle in your life.  

With much love, 

The Hoggan's

Fundraising & “6 Figure Income”?!?

WHO BENEFITS FROM AN ADOPTION FUNDRAISER?!?

Why would we do any fundraising AT ALL when we have a moderately priced home, a reasonably low cost of living, and a consistent 6 figure income? 

Why did we feel directed by Heaven to start fundraising? 

We operate a successful dental office and are starting a side venture to promote group games, fun, and fitness (Rocky Mountain Combat) that customarily sucks away a lot of our spending income while it’s still in its developing years.  

At the end of 2018 our dental business had a stretch of a couple months where our income was abnormally lower than normal. Perhaps it was because more people wanted less expensive treatment for their teeth.  That’s ok because I’m here in rural Colorado to serve the people the way they want to be served. We got by just fine.  But as we felt an urgency to be prepared to bring our children home from Haiti, we felt (and still feel) financial pressure to be prepared for the day we receive a referral. So, we felt impressed to attempt fundraising. Mills and I spent a day at a craft fair in nearby Rifle selling homemade chocolates, suckers, and puzzle pieces.  

That experience provided THE GREATEST BENEFIT OF ALL: connections with people, friendships started, and understanding the value of opening up enough to RECEIVE love and support from others instead of trying to do it all on our own. Ironically, after we learned that the greatest lesson/benefit of fundraising is creating awareness, making connections, and receiving love.....our production and profits at the dental office jumped right back up to normal and above. In fact, January 2019 has been our most profitable month since we opened....by a pretty big margin!   

SO, I AM LEFT TO PONDER GOD’S INVOLVEMENT and what I am invited to learn through this experience:

1. Was God involved in our income dropping for a few months so that we would start fundraising for the benefit of making connections and RECEIVING love, and then for showing us that He can almost double our average monthly income?  Is the lesson of RECEIVING love THAT important to Him?

2. Is God breaking me down through a medium I understand (money) to break me down in a medium I avoid (opening up to others) so He can build me up in His way (BOTH giving and receiving love) and afterwords bless me with what I enjoy working with (growing things via money)?!?  That’s a long winded and complicated question, but it runs deep in my soul right now!!!

I am convinced of this:

1. He can take it all away, and He can multiply it many times over as fast as He wishes. 

2. Although He uses money for good, He doesn’t worry much about money. If He needs money to grow for a good cause He uses His willing tools/children so we can grow in the process. 

3. What really matters to Him is that we, all of us mortals on earth… we “children of God”… connect with each other and share love. 

4. That we both give love AND receive love in all the variable ways that love can be given or received is a big deal.  

What a valuable lesson the last 3 months have been in my personal and family life!

Post-blog request: 

Please follow our page ("bookmark" it on your browser or subscribe via blogger to get email updates).  When you feel inclined to bless us with your story, your words of encouragement, or anything else good, please comment.  If our adventures may help you or someone you know, please share our blog with them.  We are also happily accepting donations.  To help us financially, we have the following options:
A. Venmo "Millie-Hoggan" or 
B. Mailed Check made out to "Hoggan Handfuls Adoption Benefit Account" and mailed to Alpine Bank (Mail to 82 Sipprelle Dr, Battlement Mesa, CO 81636) 
C. Walk-in cash donations at Alpine Banks in Colorado to the "Hoggan Handfuls Adoption Benefit Account".  
We understand you can only give so much financially each month to causes you support.  If you can’t help us now, but want to, we ask that you think of us and our mission the next time you can give financial support to someone.  
Regardless of how you participate in our efforts to raise our little tribe, we appreciate the prayers, the kind words, and uplifting stories shared by so many!  May your loving kindness come full circle in your life.  

With much love, 

The Hoggan's