Reflections of a Near Mid Life Korean American Adoptee

A letter to my adoptive parents

Authors collection

Dear Mom and Dad,

I’ve worked with people wanting to become United States citizens for a decent amount of time now.

While there is a diversity in everyone’s cases, I’ve also come across a lot of sad adoption stories. Children who have grown up without citizenship because their adoptive parents failed them.

I’m coming to a point I am feeling we live in a traumatized world, whose systems have impacted families in ways that have managed to harm family systems and relationships. And to preserve a family who has been impacted by political issues is something to be grateful for.

This week my colleagues discussed over lunch a documentary from Korea exposing the Korean government’s adoption of mostly our generation of kids overseas, as a sham and way to make money. I have so many strange encounters with my own community, who as this continues to come to light, are themselves traumatized by its harm.

But for so many people, I feel so thankful that I can make a clear delineation in my life experience and say that however I came to be, I experienced real love and value my life and my family here.