When I was twelve years old, I found out that I had an older brother. My mother told me almost by accident, like it was no big deal, as if it hadn't occurred to her that it was something that I might find, I dunno, kinda important.
(I've written before about the fact that I have a non-nuclear family - and that I have an older brother, but... Well, here is more.)
My first instinct was I wanted to meet him, but... no luck. My mother was able to tell me his first and middle names, but she wouldn't tell me his last name. Or his mother's name. Or where he lived. Or anything, really.
A few months after I found out, my little brother and I went to visit my dad and I asked... more. Again, I didn't really get anything. (My father's first divorce was, um, less than amicable.) But I did see T's picture for the first time, an old picture of a toddler, a dead-ringer as my brother.
In the years that followed... nothing much happened. I used T's names as computer passwords, I wrote about the whole frustrating situation, but... Well, it's hard to track someone down when all you have is a first and middle name.
Fast-forward about a decade and... he found us.
During my last (southern-hemisphere) summer in New Zealand, I got an email from a paternal-family friend, one of the few people from that side of the family that I enjoy staying in touch with. (She couldn't help herself - even though she felt weird being the one to tell me.) T had found the family online... And he'd been reunited with them, spent Christmas with them, was back.
(It's both exciting and a little bit scary finding out news like this. He hadn't contacted me or my little brother - So I was worried that he didn't want to meet us. I didn't want to step on toes, or make him uncomfortable, or... I dunno.)
And I waited. Months. Until we got back to Canada in the spring of 2007.
(Holy nerves, Batman!)
When we got back to the country, The Mothers were itching to throw a wedding reception for us. So. I creeped on T online. I found his address. I put his name on a reception invitation. I mailed the invite.
Then... I waited.
