An adopted girl had the internet in tears after mouthing "my mommy" in a now-viral TikTok video.
In the clip, two-year-old Amaris can be seen sitting on a stage with her preschool classmates. The kids performed during a Thanksgiving celebration, but the toddler couldn't focus on anything except for her mother, Genevieve Traversy, who was in the audience.
Traversy told TODAY Parents that she felt like that was the moment she realized she was not going anywhere. She said just thinking about it makes her cry.
Traversy filmed the viral video back in 2019
Traversy, who lives in North Carolina, shared the powerful video earlier this month, but she filmed the footage in 2019, shortly after she adopted her daughter. Amaris is now five years old and is in kindergarten.
The proud mom gushed that she is a big kid now and is starting to read. Amaris was just a newborn when she entered the foster care system, and she was placed with Traversy, her husband, Shawn, and their four children at 18 months old. When the tot arrived at the home of the Traversys, she was scared of people. Amaris would flinch if a person got too close to her.
Traversy said that Amaris had never drank out of a cup before, and she had a lot of fears. She was terrified of taking baths and did not like being touched. Traversy revealed that she also liked to bite. They never gave up on her, though, with Traversy saying they had to pour a lot of love into her.
Traversy hopes to inspire others to foster and adopt
She added that there was quite a bit of crying, not just from her but from all of them, as it was hard. Traversy said it was all worth it. She noted that if you see her now, you would not know she was the same little girl who came to them, adding that Amaris loves gymnastics and is hilarious.
Traversy knew Amaris' situation fully as she was also a former foster child, according to Upworthy. She had to go through 15 homes before she signed herself out of the system at 18. Traversy, who became a first-time mother at 16, did not let that stop her as she earned three college degrees, including one in psychology. Traversy now works as a life coach and foster care recruiter. She is also working on a self-help book.
Traversy hopes that sharing her story with Amaris will inspire others to foster and adopt. She and her husband still take in foster kids. She said that trauma does not define a child; underneath that trauma is a beautiful person just waiting to flourish. She added that no child should be considered a lost cause.
