My Adoption Story

I know not everyone has a feel-good adoption story. For some people it is a very sensitive subject. Thankfully that is not true for me.

Growing up

I have always known I was adopted.  I remember going through the process of adoption with my younger brother (we are not biological siblings). It was nothing that was ever hidden from me, but it wasn’t something we talked about openly.  I do know that I could ask any questions I wanted of my parents and they would answer them as best they could. I never really had the desire to go on the search for my biological family, though I did want to find out what my heritage was.  See, I’ve always been in fascinated by different cultures and heritages. 

It All Started with a Kit

In 2019 I purchased an AncestryDNA kit when it was on sale, sent in my sample and waited. It took about 6 weeks, but then I got an email. I remember exactly where I was. Nathan and I had taken a trip over to the nearest IKEA and we were checking out. It told me not only what my ethnicity was (Surprise! I’m 50% Jewish, born to a Jewish mom), but it gave me the name of a first cousin and many, many second cousins. Within 24 hours of getting my result, I got an email from someone that was listed as a second cousin name Iris. Iris asked me how I fit in the puzzle and I told her my story. She asked if it showed any other relatives and I told her who it listed as my first cousin and from there she was able to tell me who my biological mom was and that she had passed away from cancer. She also told me that I had a few brothers.

I Have Brothers!

Nathan found them on Facebook and sent them all friend requests and Facebook messages. One of them responded to Nathan’s very vague message saying “Nope” so Nathan responded by sending a picture of me and Rosalynn. My brother called him immediately and said, “DUDE YOU MARRIED MY SISTER!” My older brother remembers me being born. The younger two were told about me as my mom was getting close to dying. About two weeks after talking on the phone for the first time, I got to meet two of my brothers. One of them lives out of state, and I still have not been able to go and meet him in person. Meeting the two of them was the most amazing experience ever. It’s like a puzzle piece I didn’t know was missing was suddenly found. We now have a great relationship and my kids adore all their Uncles.

You might be wondering how my parents took all this news.  To be honest I was a little nervous telling them. They were so grateful for me telling them and not keeping it a secret and also, I think, excited for me.