Happy Thanksgiving

I have to start out by saying, I cried like a baby. I was at work and had to go to the men's room and get control of myself. I have waited 30 years for this news.

1966 was a very long time ago. Connie and Dave lived in suburban Chicago. They were seniors in high school. It was a typical teenage 60s high school story. Connie's parents were weird. Her mom was crazy, and her dad was a fireman who worked odd hours. Dave's mom was a little more eccentric, and his brother was gay. Dave and Connie were in love and in 1966 Connie was pregnant.

Their parents understood and Connie dropped out of high school short of graduation to go away to have the baby. It was a girl, and she "gave it up" for adoption. This would be the end of another typical high school romance but for one thing; Connie got pregnant a second time.

So, Connie and Dave got married. They were way too young and they got married for all the wrong reasons. Connie did not finish high school and Dave worked to support her and their new baby, Jennifer. It was tough being young, poor, and having a new family. Still, they thought they were doing the right thing.

In 1972 they went on vacation to Colorado and the next year they moved to Denver. Dave got a job with a linen company and Connie worked at Target. Things were still rough. Money was short and both Dave and Connie felt trapped. Jennifer spent far too much time alone, at babysitters, or unsupervised. Finally, in 1973 Dave and Connie separated.

I met Connie at Target. My own marriage was not going well. We went out and had fun, laughed, and for a few hours forgot about our problems. Connie told me the story about her and Dave, and how Jennifer had an older sister. The daughter she "gave up", Jennifer's "Big Sister".

Over the next ten years I helped raise Jennifer. She never really saw me as her Dad. Dave was her Dad and she loved to go visit. He had all the cool new stuff. I taught Jennifer to tuck point, took her to get her jaw fixed, and explained birth control. I sent her to Computer Camp to learn how to use a PC. I leased her a new car. I took her to Wally World and moved her to College. Over that time we often talked about her Big Sister. Connie was tormented by the past and wanted closure.

Connie and I separated. We were great friends but poor spouses. Jennifer lived with me until she graduated College and got married. The issue of her Big Sister was never resolved. Connie called in 1985, I think, to tell me she had begun the process of trying to get in touch with her daughter. The one she "gave up". She had notified the agency that she would accept communication from her daughter. Time passed. Then I heard that Connie had gotten a letter. her daughter was fine, but wanted to remain private. We all understood.

Until today. Jennifer called me to say her Big Sister....Odessa, had contacted Connie and would be interested in communicating. Wow! It has been 41 years since Connie and Odessa last saw each other. No promises. Who knows what will happen..............Happy Thanksgiving.