Monday, August 14, 2006

Family Reunion

It's been about 7 months now since an innocent visit from my mother-in-law shook us up for good.

Jason grew up an only child. His mother became accidentally pregnant with him when she was 19. She quietly married his father a few months before he was born. She turned 20 3 days before giving birth, and while on the table having her son, she informed the doctor that she would like to have her tubes tied.

She hasn't even met her son yet, she has her whole life in front of her, and yet she knows with certainty that she'll never want another child.

I think it's safe to say that Jason was not terribly wanted.

However, I will attest to the fact that it is impossible not to fall in love with Jason. Even if you resist, he draws you in eventually. His mother was drawn in. She brought him up and loved him, no doubt about it. He may have been a mistake, but she never held it against him.

And then 7 months ago, we had her up for a visit. We brought her to see the sights, we fed her good food, marinated her in good wine, let her have the good bed.....

and then the bomb was dropped.


Jason, it seems, is not an only child at all.

He has a brother.

A brother he never knew about until just 7 months ago.

Jason, always an affable guy, was a good sport about it.

I remember just being stunned over the resemblance.

I mean, you hear about "long lost twins" and "separated at birth" on soap operas, but you never imagine it will happen to you, to your life. Real life.

It's shocking really, but when you see Jason and his brother side by side, there's no denying it. The family resemblance is incredible.

It's been a strange few months. In many ways, life goes on. Not much has changed, on the surface. But we've all been gravatating toward the date in late July that was set for them to meet once again.





more zoo pictures here.

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