Monday, November 23, 2009

"Real Parents"

Don Surber caught my attention with the story of an adoptee who went in search of his "real parents":


Matthew Roberts, 41, set out to find his “real” parents after he grew up as an adopted child.

It is natural.

But his is a cautionary tale for adoptees everywhere.

He found his biological mother 12 years ago. She was coy about who his father is.

She finally told him.

Charles Manson.

“I didn’t want to believe it. I was frightened and angry. It’s like finding out that Adolf Hitler is your father,” Roberts told the London Sun. “I’m a peaceful person — trapped in the face of a monster.”

They do look alike, except for that swastika that Mansion carved into his forehead.

Roberts writes him but has yet to talk to the madman on the phone, even though he has his prison telephone number.

His father told him not to look for his biological father, saying, “Nothing good will come from this.”

Dad was right.

My advice? If you had good adoptive parents, don’t ask. I was 47 when I met my father. I was not impressed.

Nurture, not nature, is the key.
Obviously, this is a pretty extreme case. I commented at Surber's that while I've never met my biological parents that I have been blessed to have known my "real parents" since I was ten days old.

I don't know why I've never had any real curiosity about my biological parents but I suspect it is because of the way my parents handled the subject of my adoption.

I don't remember being told that I was adopted, it is just something that I've always known. My parents wrote about my adoption in my "baby book" and were always very open about it. My Mom and Dad told me that loving parents want the best for their children and that my biological parents loved me enough to make sure that I would have the best life possible.

I hope with all my heart that wherever my biological parents are, they know that they made the right decision and that I am very grateful to them.

I've always said that children are a blessing from God. God blessed me with two wonderful children and with two loving and dedicated parents.

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