Tags

, , ,


Wow..sometimes life really surprises you!  I’ve known all my life I had another brother out in the west.  I had located him once after Dad died (to give him the bad news) but it took hiring someone to find one of his siblings, calling them and getting a phone number for him.  We had one short phone call six years ago and nothing since.  I figured he didn’t want to know me so I gave him space.  Every now and then I would search the internet for his name.  Last year  I found mention of his being in a wreck; it appeared he was okay.  Then about three weeks ago, I was in a DCF training about Family Finders and it got me to thinking about him again.  And my co-worker told me about a website that sometimes has information on people.  So I looked him up and found a mailing address.  I wrote him with my contact information, including Facebook.  He called me last Friday.  I was at work and didn’t recognize the number.  When I checked my voicemail Sunday, he left me his number and that he had set up an account on Facebook.  I called him back.  He couldn’t talk much because he was driving some mountain pass.  He said he would call me the next day.  I ran to the computer and tried to find him.  I couldn’t.  I didn’t know what he looked like and some accounts didn’t have pictures anyway.  So I couldn’t do anything but wait for him to call me back.  It took forever for him to call me back Monday.  But we are in different timezones.  I was in the car with Number One fixing to get some takeout for supper.  We talked for over an hour.  Needless to say, she did the supper thing for both of us.  She’s great like that!

His voice is very deep-sounding to me.  My other brother’s voice was deep too.  He wanted contact.  It turns out he had lost my information too and had tried unsuccessfully to find me as well.  I think I was so excited to hear from him I monopolized the conversation.  But he missed out on so much with our father I was trying to catch him up on everything in a short phone call.  It can’t be done.  I learned a little about him.  He and his girlfriend have been together for 13 years and have twin 8-year olds.  So now I get to be an aunt and a sister-in-law.  My children have an uncle.  And I have a “little” brother.  I sent him pictures.  While we were talking on the phone he gave me his Facebook information.  And before I went to bed, he had pictures of his father, aunts, sister (me!) and niece and nephew.  And he had names of cousins.  At least three sent him friend requests.  I am so thrilled I can barely sleep these days.  I wrote him tonight.  I got to five-and-a-half pages and had to type it instead because it was getting sloppy and I wasn’t even finished.  How do you describe a father he doesn’t know?  The father I had would not have been the same father he had.  Dad had changed over the years, mostly in good ways.

I don’t know what kind of relationship we will have but I hope it turns out well.  It’s odd though.  Being my age and just now talking to someone I’ve been related to his whole life.