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I’m awesome. You

want to know why I’m awesome? Because I’m adopted. No, don’t worry,

I’m not taking away from anyone who was not adopted. I’m merely

expressing how happy and proud I am to say that I am

adopted. 

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Growing up, I

was not the only person in my hometown who was adopted. There were

two girls: one was a year older than me, the other was a year

younger. However, I was the only one who was adopted from a

different country. 

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Sometimes,

adopted children look different because they are from a different

country. I went to a predominantly white school. I was one of three

Asians in my high school, and was the only one from my graduating

class. 

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Did I care that

I looked different? Did other people care that I was different? No.

In today’s world, that’s often not an issue because we are diverse.

Don’t worry about the way you look if you look different, and don’t

be afraid to address the situation of where you come

from. 

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It’s an

important part of your story — don’t be afraid to tell

it. 

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It’s not so bad

being adopted. To some it may seem weird, because you are only part

of the family legally — but to me, it’s actually not

bad. 

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I cannot imagine

what life would be like had I stayed in South Korea. Not because I

didn’t want to be there, but because I couldn’t imagine not being

where I am today. 

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Sure, there

always comes the question of why you were put up for adoption. A

lot of people tend to think it was a negative reason. The parents

didn’t want you, there was something wrong, whatever. 

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Adopted people

should not think of it that way. More often than not, they were put

up for adoption because their parents wanted them to have a better

life. 

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Instead, be

grateful for the situation. Yes, adopted children may be the result

of an unplanned pregnancy, but that does not take away from your

worth and that does not mean you were a “mistake.” If you think

that, don’t. 

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I was a mistake,

but I have the right to be here and be happy as much as everyone

else. 

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I’m proud of who

I am and where I came from.

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It’s funny,

because as much as people tend to make fun of Brad Pitt and

Angelina Jolie for adopting so many children, one can’t help but

respect them for helping out an important cause. They understand

that they can give kids better lives, and while I don’t expect

everybody to go out and adopt three kids, I do hope you can

understand that Angelina Jolie is not crazy for what she

does.

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Should adoption

be your number one choice if you are looking for children? That is

up to you. If you want to have children of your own, by all means,

I’m not going to try to stop you. 

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But if you are

considering adoption, follow it up. It’s a good option to have if

you want kids and if you want to help them out. 

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And you never

know, you may hit the jackpot with the kid you adopt. Look at the

Kents from Smallville — they adopted Superman! I’m sure they’re

pretty happy about that.

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 — Jordan

Wickstrom is a junior in journalism and mass communication from

Beresford, South Dakota.