Blood and Ears

Editor's note: The picture to your right is a shot of my biological brother, Jeremy, me, my kid, and my biological mom, Cathy.

I'm all teary eyed at the moment. I was just on MySpace and my cousin, Tiffany [who I haven't seen in 3 or 4 years because she moved to California] uploaded a picture of her three children. The oldest one smiles just like my nephew. And I can tell from old pictures that he looks like my dad when he was a little boy [they both have huge Patterson ears (:]. Her youngest child bears a striking resemblance to my Uncle Jerry [her dad, who died of cancer when I was eleven].

I couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy.

Er, um, I'm adopted.

Please, don't get me wrong. I love the fact that I'm adopted. When I was little my parents would say, "Brandy, what are you?" And I would proudly exclaim, "I'm adopted! And I'm special!"

And I've always felt that way. For my 18th birthday my parents contacted my birth mom and orchestrated a surprise reunion. Her name is Cathy and she is wonderful. She lives in Syracuse and we keep in touch. She's coming to my wedding! She has a son named Jeremy [who's 18 and just finished Air Force Basic Training] whom I adore. I get to be a baby sister and an older sister. It really is the best of both worlds.

I don't know my biological father. I know his name is Llewellyn [Pronounced "lou-ellen"] Hitchcock. I'm pretty sure he wants nothing to do with me. I'm okay with that. I have an amazing father whom I respect more than I can adequately express with words. Of course, that explains my jealousy.

My [future [not yet conceived]] son won't have my dad's huge ears [but he will have Jermaine's huge backside [which, let's be honest - is just as weird].

The birth of my daughter was a miracle like no other. Laying in that hospital room holding my newborn, all I could think was, "Wow, she has my DNA." She was the first person in my family tree that I got to see on a daily basis. That affected me.

Growing up, I never had that. And I longed for it. I would hear things like, "So and so looks just like her mom," and feel sad.

Now, I'm borderline whining. Everyone who knows me well knows that my parents are amazing and that my childhood was idyllic.

But after seeing those gorgeous little ones, I felt compelled to write this blog.

So, I did.

This last shot is a picture of me [obviously], my Dad, my Mom, and my brother, Shawn.

I also feel compelled to add that people tell me all the time I look like my mom and that Sadie looks like her Grandmother. Oddly enough, I agree.