Story of a Girl, Chapter 5

Chapter Five - Chosen


There is something that happens when you are expecting a baby. You start to imagine your child and their future. You get to thinking about all the possibilities for this new life you are carrying. Naturally, looking into the future often leads directly into considering the past. I was no exception to this. I suddenly found myself with a lot of questions about my birth mother and her family history. It was a little disconcerting as a first time expectant mother, when I was hit with a barrage of questions about my families medical history at the doctors office. Were there hereditary diseases or conditions? How about pregnancies? Was there a history of problematic pregnancies or births? I didn't know. I didn't even know if I was born early or late; or big or small. These are questions my parents couldn't answer for me. They had not been informed of any medical history. We had to assume that no news was good news.


Then my mom remembered that when they adopted me, they were told that there was a 50/50 chance I could have some form of mental retardation, due to some minor complications during birth, and they probably wouldn't be able to tell for sure until I was around two years old. My parents chose to take that chance and adopted me anyway.


I felt a renewed sense of respect and awe for my parents. Would I have made that choice if I were in their shoes? I considered the baby I was carrying and knew that nothing would stop me from choosing him. But with adoption, you could say, “No, I'll wait for the next available child.”


My parents explained that they had felt that I was their child. As soon as they received the call about me, they knew I was meant for them. They had been waiting for a long time for me, and nothing would keep them from choosing me.





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