The most rewarding experience of my life

[RaymondG]

I've  got a few years up now, certainly enough to have some great experiences...

 

I've been married to a wonderful woman, endured the struggles that such relationships bring, learned the patience necessary to deal with them and then had the heartache of losing that life partner. Not what you would experience in the new system, but an indelible part of this one.

 

Many things have come my way subsequently, but nothing can match what has happened to me as a result of making contact with one of the members here. During the course of a phone conversation she said to me, "It's 20 years today since my mom died." Well, I guess I had to react in some way to that, and as I knew her father had died when she was just a kid I replied, "So you're an orphan then?"

 

"Yeah, I'm an orphan. Will you adopt me?"

 

Neither of us were to know just how involving this would be, how much it would mean to us and to others. Well, I did say it was rewarding, the 'most rewarding' in fact. Would you like me to continue this story?

[Tortuga]

Welcome back.

[RaymondG]

Thank you for that...

 

It really took another eight years for the experience to become 'rewarding' in the way the heading suggests. But between us we worked out a nice plan for an adoption to fit into my itinerary as I got near the end of my 2016 trip to the US and Europe.

 

Ang made all the arrangements and in our discussions we decided to include her older sister in it too. After all, she was also an orphan. Then Leslie's story about the loss of her dad meant she also qualified for adoption, while a younger sister, Summer, who was close to Ang at the time and who was unable to walk unaided had no father in her life. My family was really growing here!

 

But it still was only a half-serious arrangement. We all had our separate lives and although we put on a ceremony and there were many guests who signed the certificates Ang had printed up as witnesses to the event, there may have been nothing more than occasional contact when that July 4 afternoon was over.

 

It was a fun event...

 

 

[RaymondG]

Insert

 

Summer wasn't there for the party, but Shelly, Leslie and Ang were and Kayla - who's been a daughter to Shelly almost all of her life - got added in too.

 

Leslie had to leave a little early and I had to go off and give Summer her certificate before I left town. Leslie phoned me as I drove down the highway and I wouid never have expected that the seven years before I recontacted her would wreak the havoc on her that it did.

 

But, in fact, all of 'my' girls would need me in some way before I saw them again and the adoptions would take on a new and greater meaning than we ever anticipated. 

 

But before all of that could take place a near total communication blackout imposed by my new wife had to be overcome.