Face to face for the first time

Part of my adoption story

Would I see myself in his eyes? Would the answers to all my questions unfold from his words? Would the meet up unlock all the closed doors of my history?

None of that happened.

Instead, my biological paternal uncle, an elder by less than 10 years, turned out to be a warm, generous, slightly quirky, inquisitive and open human. Someone who could’ve easily said no to meeting up or shown up cautious, reserved, demanding - but he didn’t. Instead he bravely ventured into a gaggle of four newly found genetic relatives and their partners, enduring the waves of hugs and smiles and barrage of questions.

This generosity put my own