Month: December 2018

  • Mami, what do you do?

    Mami, what do you do?

    The curiosity to understand our parents’ day jobs has begun, earlier for Jackie than it happened to me. In first or second grade I had to tell my teacher what my parents did for a living, except my parents didn’t have standard jobs (policeman, teacher, doctor etc). My mom was a chemist working in a…

  • Fascinating past

    Fascinating past

    I wonder what life was like back then. What were my parents daily concerns. How they perceived us, each other, the world. When my mom tells me stories, I am always fascinated, yet I know the stories are now filtered through a lifetime of events, lived with presence. Jackie loves to hear stories about me…

  • Loneliness

    Loneliness

    I don’t presume to grasp fully this feeling, but I’ve had my encounters with it. It is what brought me to my knees, as a figure of speech as well as literally, over two decades ago. This year I’ve read a handful of books, mainly on parenting to help me to better tackle this role, but…

  • Pentru mama și tata

    Pentru mama și tata

    Fără pretenții, cu capul pe umeri și cu piciorele pe pamant, așa ne-ați inspirat să devenim adulți întregi. Nu v-ați cerut drepturile unul de la altul, nu v-ați declarat așteptările, ci v-ați slujit reciproc, și ne-ați grijit pe noi cu tot ce ați avut mai bun, și mai ales cu o inimă sinceră în vorbire…

  • Perspective

    Perspective

    Is perspective different from culture to culture? Definitely I would say.  Adoption is not talked about much in Romania because it’s rarer and somewhat tabu. While in California it was all too common, and thus lost in familiarity. We want to admit it or not, in many countries there is a stigma associated with adoption.…

  • The love that lingers

    The love that lingers

    “A lot of people love me! Carmen loves me! Do you remember? In Lacu Roșu, she would greet me with: Good morning, sunshine!” says Jackie, on the way to kindergarten this morning, out of the blue.  Ah, the knowledge, the belief and confidence that you are loved without a trace of doubt. May this sense…

  • Are you French?

    Are you French?

    When I met Conrad I knew our kids will be different. The gift and burden of international parents, bilingual and preprogramed with wanderlust

  • What qualifies me to write about adoption?

    What qualifies me to write about adoption?

    Absolutely nothing …except for my God given gift for words, the delight of expressing myself in writing, and the love I have for my daughter.

  • Family in celebration mode

    Family in celebration mode

    It could have fooled anyone. A celebratory sight. Dressed for holiday: our table, our attire, our smiles.

  • How well do you understand adoption?

    How well do you understand adoption?

    I know now that I didn’t know anything really, back when I decided to dive into the deep end of adoption. But I knew then how little I understood, and I was afraid. I asked myself: do I really want to start this journey and do I have what it takes to survive it?

  • Cartea se lansează în Ianuarie

    Cartea se lansează în Ianuarie

    Copiii noștri au o voce. O voce senină, clară, chiar și atunci când este tremurată sau soptită. Uneori nouă adulților ne este frică sau jenă să privim drept în ochi inima lor, iubirea lor, durerea lor. Dar important e că vrem să le ascultăm povestea. N-o să înțelegem niciodată pe deplin totul. Dar faptul că…

  • About Sadness

    About Sadness

    “I feel sad”, says my 5 year old. “Why”, I ask. “I don’t know”, she answers.