Vol. 3, No. 1 • Fall 1998

Street Dogs: �The Adoption� By Michael, age 9 Once there were street dogs. Their names were Dalmatian, Boxer, Cowdog, Hound dog, Pit Bull, and Collie dog. (Notice the different types of dogs and their personalities!) Of the 6 dogs, Boxer had been adopted. Meanwhile, the others continued to live in the street. They lived in the trash cans, stole food, and were in and out of the pound. One day while stealing food from a celebration, the other 5 dogs were enjoying a meal of cakes, cookies, ice-cream, and doughnuts. The people who owned the food were very angry. They caught the dogs and called for the pound to pick them up. At the pound the dogs noticed some other dogs they knew from the street. Their names were Lab and Chihuahua. These two dogs were well known on the street for their �smooth moves.� The 7 dogs came up with a plan of escape from the pound. They were tired of this life. Often they thought of Boxer and how they heard he was living. They wanted the same for themselves. Lab kept the pound keepers busy by acting out of control. Chihuahua helped the other 5 escape. Guess where they ended up? At the pet store! All 7 of them! Who do you think they happened to see in the pet store? Boxer�s owner, Ms. Breeder! Yeah! What was she doing here? Maybe she wanted some more dogs!! They definitely wanted to at least try to �do the right thing!� Quickly, they put on their best manners as they often saw Boxer do. Maybe this would get the attention of the owner. Guess what? It did! Boxer�s owner, Ms. Breeder, bought all 7 of the dogs! When they got home, Boxer greeted them all with a �big brother� ROOF! ROOF! They were all glad to be together. Boxer was eager to show them how to act the way Ms. Breeder taught him. It was a pleasant time to be with a person who cared for them. They especially loved the �great food��steaks, chops, veal, etc. . . . And they didn�t even have to steal it! How nice it was to have their own special baskets to sleep in! Don�t even forget the baths. They REALLY LOVED IT! They knew Ms. Breeder cared for them the way she taught and showed them many new and wonderful things! I am writing these stories about dogs because I love dogs. I also know how the dogs felt to have a �good home� life. I think the stories can be the same as how I feel about foster care and adoption. I am glad and not embarrassed to be with people who love me very much! This lets me know that God loves me too! Stay tuned for more!	I Love My Mom by Wendy, age 17 My mom is a very special, unique person. The reason she is so special is because one day almost four years ago she reached out her had and opened her home to me. Yes, I am a foster child and my foster mom has been more of a mom to me than my biological mother has or ever will be. I am treated like one of the family and I have my foster mom to thank for that on her side of the family. When mother/daughter events come up, we go together. She doesn't look at me as just someone else's daughter--I am hers. Maybe not by birth, but by love. One thing that really stuck with me is something she once told me when I was down, and that was: "Blood may be thicker than water, but love is thicker than blood." I love her as if she has been there from the start of my life. She is my angel sent from God. She makes sure I have everything that I need, especially love and security. I love my "mom" because she didn't look down on me because of what and where I came from or had gone through, but because she saw what I could be and opened her home, life, and heart to me. This is why my mom, Jackie, is so special and loved so much. --------------------------------------------- Drawing Contest This winning drawing of someone raking was sent in by William in response to last issue's drawing contest. He won $50 for his artwork. Send Us You Artwork! Can you draw, paint, or sketch? Share your talents with us! Fostering Perspectives awards children and teens who are living or have lived in foster care a prize of $15 for artwork we publish. We are especially interested in art that relates to you and your life in foster care. Artwork should be on white paper, and should be mailed flat. Unpublished submissions will be returned. Send submissions to: John McMahon, Editor Fostering Perspectives UNC School of Social Work CB# 3550 Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3550
Writing Contest Winners	Here are the winners of last issue's writing contest, which asked foster kids to write about: "The Do's and Don'ts of meeting a foster family. Think about the time when you first came to stay with a foster family. What did you want your foster parents to tell you about themselves? What did you want them to know about you?"
First Place by Erin When I came into foster care I was really scared. I didn�t know what to expect from them [my foster parents]. I first got placed with a very wonderful lady. That was the first I had ever been taken away from my home. I expected it to be the most horrible thing in the world. My mother had always told me that they would lock me in the closet and do terrible things to me, but that was not it at all. I arrived in the evening, my sister and I. Boy was I scared. So we got settled and �Mama� fixed me a comfortable bed and held my hand while I cried to sleep. Unfortunately she passed away about a year later. I would have to say that I had a wonderful family life while it lasted. So after she passed on I was scared that I was going to have to go to another home and go through it all again. But we got placed in her daughter�s home, the one we met while we were with �Mama.� She was a wonderful person. I am a bad kid and I wanted more than anything in the world to show her that I was a great kid so that she would love me and keep me. As the months went by things got easier. I got used to being there. I have been with �Mom� for two years now and I would never want to change my life for the world. I commend her for everything that she has done for me. I love her so much and I know that she loves me the way I am and everything will come out in the wash. She helped me so much after I have been down that hard road. I am going to make something of my life and I owe it all to my family.	Second Place by Jamie, age 12 It�s hard living with a foster family. My dog, Otie, and me have been staying with our foster parents for only a week. The hardest part, I think, is meeting the family. I mean, you want to make a good first impression and be happy, but sometimes you just want to be alone. What you should do when you meet a new family is be yourself. What you shouldn�t do is try to be happy all the time if you are sad or angry. And don�t try to impress everyone. When I met my foster parents, I wanted to know a lot about them, but I wanted them to know only a little about me. What I wanted them to tell me were things like what they liked and about their family. What I wanted them to know about me was what I liked to do and how I liked school, not much about my family. Now, me and Otie (my dog) are doing fine. And . . . I think Otie likes the whole foster family, too! Third Place by Ashely, age 10 The do�s and don�ts of foster families are like normal rules. You ask a question when you need an answer. You need to never hide anything from your foster family. A lot of foster kids like you and me want to know about their new families. I wanted to know all about their families�did they have brothers and sisters, and much more. The hard part was telling them about myself. I could make them mad or sad or maybe happy. Well, in my mind I will always remember the do�s and don�ts of foster families.
Activity for kids RUBBER BAND BANJO Did you know that sound is caused by vibrations? Try making your own sounds by vibrating different rubber bands. Keep plucking and create a tune! Materials: empty juice carton, tissue box, or shoe box rubber bands of different sizes pencils scissors What to Do: 1. Cut openings of different sizes in one side of the containers. 2. Choose rubber bands that are large enough to encircle the container without crushing it. Stretch rubber bands of different sizes around the container. Make sure the rubber bands stretch over the cut opening. 3. Raise the bands up on pencils and strum. -What must you do to the rubber bands to make a sound? - Is it possible to change the sound? - Does the shape of the hole in the container make a difference? - Does the size of the rubber band affect the sound? - Which rubber bands make the highest sound? Museum of Life and Science 433 Murray Avenue, Durham, NC 27704 919-220-5429	Strive by O�brae, age 16 Is it a sin for me to have dirty skin? Or is it against the law not to have a mama or a poppa? No matter how hard it may seem, don�t give up. Strive to the top. Grab your life and live it up. Things happen. That�s life. They always do. Criticism may even be heard from a distance. Simply hold your heart and your ears, because one doesn�t have to listen. The sky is the invisible limit that a pilot wants to reach. Fly as far as you can, until those angels are who you meet. Dreams may be thoughts, but they can be fulfilled. It can be a president of a corporation, or a potato that�s hard to peel. Whatever is whatever. If I fail to plan, I plan to fail. If I wanna be successful, I can go to Yale, If I want to go. Whatever is whatever. One can be like a starving mouse, and go after the cheddar. It�s all out there, but am I willing to be the �go-getter�? It�s pasted on your hands and engraved in your hearts. So please finish, because this is where it all starts.
Word puzzle: Sports Galore! See if you can find the following words in the puzzle at right. For more fun, try to name the sport associated with each of these words. 1. Discus 2. Dribble 3. Dunk 4. Field goal 5. Halftime 6. Helmet 7. Hurdle 8. Javelin 9. Jersey 10. Mask

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