Birthdays Are Complex Monsters

For many, birthdays are a time to rejoice, celebrate and of course tell birth stories! For me birthdays are not imbued with the same sense of gleeful nostalgia. They are subtle reminders of an uncertain past and an unknown beginning. The first birthday is not simply a date. It is an experience that, although no […]

Hiding at Home

I was scared, terrified. It was probably midnight and we had just walked off the plane. Off the plane and out into the cool night air. I was with my older sister, but was still scared. I thought being here was going to calm me down, make me feel comfortable and “normal”. I thought being […]

“I was adopted by…”

I’ve been trying to figure out how to write this post for quite a while and today I came across a few pieces, one in particular, that have helped me greatly. I found these pieces on Pactadopt.org, specifically the Grief and Loss in Adoption section. Thinking about adoption as loss is something tons of people […]

An Identity Liability

Looking at a mirror I often times, more so now than in the past am startled by my reflection. I almost don’t recognize myself. My face, it looks, well, different. I’m not the young undistinguishable American looking back at me. I’m…I’m Indian. I look Indian. I mean, well, I can tell, just by looking at […]

Adoption Blogger Interview Project 2013

Friends, acquaintances, web surfers and lurkers welcome to the Adoption Blogger Interview Project 2013. I had the wonderful opportunity to interview Lisa Cook of Open to Life (and God’s plan for it). We had a great time exchanging questions and responses over the past few weeks. Before we get started don’t forget to check out all […]

“Remarkable, however, not exceptional”

I should admit I am not really following the whole Malala Yousafzai hype. I came across the article below because a friend shared it on the good old book of faces. The piece made me wish I had been following it a bit more carefully. I had been unaware of the attempts to uplift, appropriate, adopt […]

The Orphanage Part II: Meeting the Kids

This is the second part of a two-part series. If you haven’t read the first part check it out: The Orphanage Part I: Catholic? We had just decided it was time to head down from the office and see the children. As we descended Sister Karla began telling us about their new building. She explained […]

The Orphanage Part I: Catholic?

Lawrence, the faithful, charming and ever-so-kind driver, pulls our sleek silver SUV into the gates of the orphanage. “It looks like a church,” I thought to myself as I peered through the windshield. A statue of the Virgin Mary welcomed us from the middle of the entrance. I was surprised. I had totally forgotten that […]

Stuckout

The first few days of the trip were rough. I remember feeling frustrated, angry for much of it. I had great expectations of what this trip would do for me. Growing up whenever I was bad at something or when I realized I wasn’t gong to be tall (which I took as a great disappointment) […]

A Trip Back….Home?

“We arrived in Bangalore at 1:00 in the morning. After going through customs and then getting our baggage we met Gayan. He is the guy who is our escort while we are in India. We took a taxi back to the hotel. On the way we saw a lot of stray dogs and some men […]