Tag: Lost Opportunity

Gone Gone Gone

An adoptee writes – I’m feeling really disheartened about finding my birth mother. I know her full name and her birth date. I also know the name of her husband but not his last name and I know the name of their first daughter together. So I’ve tirelessly searched the internet over and over and over again and cannot find anything. I asked a relative of mine who is an ex-police officer and a current private investigator to use his search system to find her and it came up with zero results. This basically never happens because there are always birth records, death records, wedding records, house records, etc. Which means that she must have scrubbed herself off the internet or she’s in something like witness protection and they scrubbed it for her.

This comes on top of me being read a letter that she wrote to me listing her favorite things, though I’ve never met her and I am 33 now. We have the same favorite author and the same favorite artist and the same taste in music. I breaks my heart that not only did I lose out on time with her but now I know I probably will never find her. I know there is DNA testing but it’s not really an option for me at this time, and if she has gone through so much effort to wipe herself off of the internet and not locatable in the world – I am going to go ahead and guess that she probably would not have done Ancestry testing.

blogger’s note – I know how sad it was for my adoptee mom the learn her birth mother had died some years before Tennessee refused to give her any of her adoption file (which they did have). I have that file now. It would have brought my mom so much comfort had they just given it to her.

Flying To Meet Mom

I remember my adoptee mom who desperately yearned to have contact with her birth mom said something similar – that she wanted her mom, as a mom herself, to know that she was okay. Unfortunately, my adoptee mom never had the opportunity.

Today’s happy story – I was adopted at birth in a closed domestic adoption. I am flying across the country, with my family (husband and 2 kids) to finally meet my genetic, biological mom, who I found 5 years ago through DNA! We have had a great relationship via FaceTime, pretty regularly.

I have also been very low contact (I send photos a handful of times a year via text) with my adoptive mother for 4 years. I love my adoptive mother, but also have chosen my peace over anything else…

Do I message her a heads up? I am sure I will post photos over the weeklong visit. I don’t feel I “owe” it to her, but also have no desire to hurt her. I’m thinking possibly the following – “Just wanted to let you know we are going to meet ***** next week. Love you very much.”

One adoptee suggested –  if it were me, I would tell your adoptive mother AFTER you’ve met your biological family but before you post pictures. That way, you get to fully enjoy your visit, without any fallout from your adoptive mother and you are still being mindful of her feelings by letting her know before pictures are shared, just so she’s not blindsided.