Okay so when did I get serious about telling my adoption story? When I was in my college church youth group, we’d sometimes have opportunities to tell the story of how we saw God’s and throughout our lives. Everyone was always intrigued when I went because my story took a really long time to tell. I felt like it was a miracle I still had enough brain cells to spare to attend college, considering the infections and undernourishment I experienced in the Philippines. The desire to learn about both medicine and child development was influenced by my complex medical history and my adoption story. These interests influenced where I chose to study and what major I chose in college.
Also in college, I mentored this 4 year old girl adopted from China through a program set up by the Asian / Pacific Student services center. I talked to her mom about my story but I first shared my story with a large group when I spoke to a panel of prospective adoptive parents during my senior year. An adoption agency had contacted the Asian student group to set this up. I was grateful that I could talk to these parents about what life was like as an international adoptee so they could better understand the children they would eventually bring into their families.
Not much happened in between college and 2016 in terms of sharing my story to large groups. However, in about January-ish of 2016, I went to a Women’s Bible Study evening at my current church because a friend was speaking. I randomly (or provincially?) next to someone who was just starting a support group for foster and adoptive parents. Of course, she was excited to talk to me when I told her that I was an adoptee.
She asked me to come to the group where, once again, I shared my story. The parents seemed really interested and asked a ton of questions. I still attend her group, as my schedule allows, so parents can pick an adoptee’s brain. Joining this group helped me get serious about telling my story because it’s really seemed like people needed to hear it and they were learning from it.
The most important factor in my ability to share my story more freely was I was becoming more comfortable in my own skin and be more comfortable thinking about my story and telling it to other people. The next logical step was to start this blog.
Adoption Etc. 