Cancelled due to Covid.

For the past ten or so years, families from our Bay Area Guatemalan adoption group have gathered this weekend to celebrate, connect, and catch up; to compare stories of travel to Guatemala and reunion with birth families. The gathering is our touchstone–a few blessed hours of conversation when everyone we talk to has walked the same path; a time, once a year, when we feel heard and understood. It’s the day we marvel together with love and pride at our beautiful children growing into adults. The day we witness our kids’ deep bonds of friendship. I wish I had an album of photos to share with you, but out of respect for everyone’s privacy, I don’t post pictures. So I’ll share a photo of Olivia and me during her Quinceanera year, which we celebrated with two other young women in our group. (A grand event!) And a photo of me during last year’s pre-party Costco run. Tomorrow, our group will celebrate via Zoom, set up by one of our moms who’s great with technology. We’ll miss the delicious potluck side dishes everyone bring, the burgers on the grill, the sweet desserts. We’ll miss the hugs. But we still have one another. That, we know, will never change. xoxo

A hard day

Easter Monday was hard and I’m not sure why. Something to do with 4 weeks of isolation, I’m guessing. Except to walk the dog, I’ve left the house exactly twice: Once to notarize a document at the UPS store. And the second time, to drive over the bridge to SF and my sister Patrice, to swap bags full of lemons for ramen and pasta. Olivia, Mateo, and I kept our 6-foot distance and refrained from hugs. But oh, to be outside, in the world, to see my sister in real life. That was glorious.