Our Russian Swan
Dear Anastasia,
The memory is crystal clear. It's the fall 1997 & I'm with my precious niece & nephew at the airport to greet their new sister from Russia. There you come now, a little blondie with bows in her hair. You shyly watched us all as we oh'ed & ah'ed over you with our welcome balloons & hugs. The next day we took you to your 1st American grocery store & you giggled at the veggie sprayers. And that was it for me...I was a goner. In that moment I fell in love with you & took you into my heart as another niece whom I adored. Adoption, schmdoption....you're family in my heart & you always will be! Because of adoption, we know the deepest secret of families: that it's not blood that joins us, but great love. (That's why husbands & wives can be true family.)
It's been amazing to see you grow over the past 9 yrs. You amaze me with your model-fab blonde hair, those magnificent Audrey Hepburn shoulders & your elegant composure. You're almost 13 now & becoming such a lovely young woman. But 13 is 13, kiddo. It's a tough age. It's hard to go thru the junior high years for most of us. We never felt we fit in, we weren't sure who we were yet & the dork in the mirror never looked as pretty as the other girls. The good news is as you keep doing your best in school & try to be a good person, you'll begin to figure out who you are & what your special mission in life is. I picture you, Anastasia, in about 10 yrs living in a beautifully restored bungalow with lovely woodwork & a bright garden. You wear pearls & perfectly tailored trousers with complete grace. You & your fiancee have season theater tickets & you volunteer with your local art museum occasionally. Your future is bright because you are smart, kind & witty. Under your shyness is an amazing woman, Anastasia. You are meant for bigger things one day. You're a swan in waiting. It's okay to feel weird because you were born abroad or you love to read. You live in a small midwestern town now & that's great. You'll have a good, solid childhood there & when you go to college, you can choose a place that has lots of others who share your interests. The world is a great, good place with room for all of us!