An odd thing happened this weekend
Monday, April 16th, 2007I opened my email and saw the usual junk items, random forwards, & emails from friends. And you know how Reunion.com sends out those emails telling you who’s been searching for you but you have to pay to see the names? Now, most of the time it’s someone from high school and I can’t guess because the info is too vague. And honestly, I delete them more than I read them. But this time I did read it and in that moment, my stomach started doing flips. The email details: Male, 55 years old & residing in Hermiston, Oregon. It didn’t take a lot for my brain to jump to my father. After all, his birthday was March 9th and he’d hit 55. I didn’t celebrate his birthday except to note the day on the calendar. And here he was. My father was on the internet (shocker) and he was searching for me (bigger shocker). I confirmed my suspicions by doing a search myself with his name. Yep, he resides in Hermiston. What are the odds and what timing! There probably couldn’t be more going on in my life right now. J offered to have us pay for a subscription to Reunion and get my father’s contact email but I don’t know. It’s been 11 years since I last saw him. I’ve married, had two wonderful children, and generally moved on with my life. I worry about upsetting the apple cart. And yes, I’m being selfish. I don’t know if I’m prepared to have him come into my life or my children’s sheltered world. They think that the stories I tell of my childhood really are just stories. I don’t know how they’d react if they met my father and found out they were true. I’m all twisted up inside and I just don’t know what to do.
