When I was 6 or 7, my parents got divorced. My dad was my favorite person! He spoiled me and I could do no wrong.. I was daddy's little angel. My dad was (still is) a truck driver, he would be gone for long periods of time. I know this was really hard on my mom. Sometimes she wouldn't know when he was coming home.
My parents were high school sweethearts. My dad went to war in Vietnam. Unfortunately it really changed him. He saw some awful things!! When I hear the stories from my uncle, it really makes me sad. For some of these reasons, he wasn't in the best time of his life, and my mom left him. She left him and didn't tell him where we were, she didn't want us (my brother Eric & I) around that kind of lifestyle. (drugs & alcohol) This was really hard on us, especially me, because I only had good memories of my dad. Father's day was always painful. (Luckily I had a wonderful grandpa that was always there for me!!)
I would always look at truck drivers and see if I could miraculously find my dad.
Me and my dad
my dad's military picture, isn't he handsome! I carried this picture in my wallet until I found him.
This is one of my favorite pics of my dad and Eric & I
shortly after this was when I didn't see him anymore.
Well, when I was 23, I got my dad's address. I hoped it was still the "right" address. I knew he moved around a lot. I wrote him a letter, letting him know how much I loved him and had missed him, but didn't know where he was. I was nervous all week and could hardly wait for a reply! One week later, we got a phone call, Ray answered, someone asking for a Donna Kay.. it was my dad! Even as I write this I get teary eyed. It was sooo wonderful! Both my dad and I could hardly get anything out we were blubbering so much.
My dad gave me my aunts and grandmas # and told me I needed to call them right away, they had missed me, too. In all my excitement and wondering about my dad, I hadn't really thought about other missing family, too. I immediately called my aunt Ellen. She wasn't sure whether to believe my dad or not, I guess the years had been really hard on him with out knowing where we were and sometimes in a drunken state he would call and tell them he had found us. Well, I called my aunt and there were more happy tears.., it just happened to be memorial day weekend- 1994- and my grandma just happened to be visiting my aunt - and my cousin Joy just happened to the Rose parade queen in Portland that year- and all my family would be gathering for that. So my aunt said, what are doing tomorrow, so we drove down to Portland to re-meet my aunt and grandma. My aunt was soo cute, she was soo excited she couldn't even think of her address and how to get to her house, so she told me to meet her at the corner of a plaid pantry. I remember being soooo excited! When Ray & I got to the Plaid pantry, it was lots of tears and hugs w/ my aunt and grandma! It was wonderful!! I had never realized how missed I was.
My aunts had taken care of me a lot when I was very little, they hadn't seen me since I was 4. When I walked into my aunt's house, there in the hallway was a 8x10 picture of me when I was 3 or 4! So then the next few months I had reunions with several of my dad's side of the family. It took a couple of weeks to have my reunion with my dad and it was wonderful, too.
Now, my dad & I talk every week or so, he lives in Elma about 45 minutes away (when he's home, he's still a truck driver)
I get to see my aunts and uncles and cousins when I can. Some of them I don't know really well, but others I do and love dearly and am so glad I have in my life (you know who you are...)
And we all lived happily ever after
The end ( or something like that..)
4 comments:
Wow! Thanks for sharing that neat story. I am glad you found your dad. They aren't replaceable even though we have other father figures who are around.
Such a great story. So glad you're having a happy middle (it's not the end yet!!)
Wow, I remember the day I re-met you too. I was at home doing laundry and daddy called and said to get ready, he would be there to pick me up in 5 minutes to go see my cousin. He was so happy. And happy for your dad. I swear, to this day, I get goose bumps thinking about walking into auntie Ellen's and seeing you. It was almost like looking in a mirror. I've always said that if I had see you on the street before that day, I would have had to stop you and ask who your daddy was, the resemblance was just to close.
I got teary-eyed reading the story. and it makes me think of the 18,000 foster kids living in washington. Do they know their parents or where they live. I wish I could adopt all of them.
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