We wouldn't have cared a bit about the mistakes she had made. We wouldn't have judged her. We would have understood.

Adoption stories are in the news often these days. However, I never tire of reunion stories as many have such varied and interesting twists and turns. This story is no exception.

I loved the positive attitude of the adoptee in this story as well. She could have become embittered because not only did her birth mom did not seek reunion, she took extreme measures to keep her mistakes hidden. Instead, she chose to appreciate her siblings and be grateful to her birth mother that they exist.

The comments about how misguided her birth mom was in her attempts to protect herself were good to hear. Although not all our children are as understanding as the adoptee in this story, the majority do have compassion for their mothers. A great deal influences how our children react to our birthmotherhood. Many of the fears that birth parents may have have little basis in reality, and their direst fears rarely come to pass.

Nevertheless, no matter how people react, our children have a right to know that other siblings exist in the world. They decide what to do with the information, but it is only fair and just that they have a chance to know siblings. Keeping secrets is risky business. The truth usually surfaces eventually, and therefore, it is better to control when it does.

Another interesting element about this story is that the siblings divided by adoption lived very close to each other several times throughout the years. Yet, until reunion they had no idea. I suppose some adoptees and birth parents understand that their birth family member might live nearby. Perhaps that is why so many people separated by adoption scan faces in crowds to look for resemblances?