Red's Wrap
Happiness. It's relative.
Category: Adoption
Straight with Many Limes
Flor de Cana is Nicaraguan rum. I’m not a connoisseur of rum. I only drink this rum. Because it is Nicaraguan. I remember being in Managua, sitting in the courtyard of Casa Bolonia, a squat, sprawling hotel where plywood had been used to make… Continue Reading “Straight with Many Limes”
Epiphany
So we’ve been having the same party every year since 1988. It’s the kind of party where I wear an apron the entire time and have a dish towel slung over my shoulder like I’m busing tables at the Holiday Inn Express. “Are you… Continue Reading “Epiphany”
Find Her: A Reflection on Lion
I don’t give advice to adoptive parents. I don’t tell them what I know or even what I suspect. I keep my mouth shut. It used to be that I figured their experiences would be different and, indeed, everyone’s experiences are different. Easy or… Continue Reading “Find Her: A Reflection on Lion”
Chosen
Either there is a plan or there is chance. There can’t be both. When my daughter and her husband adopted a little girl from China, the Chinese adoption officials told them they had selected a baby for them who looked like them. I envisioned a… Continue Reading “Chosen”
Poison
We decided that Uncle Harry’s would be a great place to celebrate our daughter Rosa’s 27th birthday. It’s a hideaway bar on the Milwaukee River with a big rustic patio. On summer nights, large, gleaming white yachts are tied up alongside Harry’s and smaller power boats… Continue Reading “Poison”
Poachers
Originally posted on Red's Wrap:
When I started my blog, I had a list of topics. Poaching was the number one item. It irked me the most. But I never wrote about it. Why? Because the weird feeling an adoptive parent gets when…
Orphan Baby
Orphan babies don’t cry. No one told me that so I thought he was happy. It unnerved me. I was used to babies squirming, wanting things, crying. I had taken pictures of my daughter’s full-throated infant cries so I’d never forget how her tiny… Continue Reading “Orphan Baby”
The Ghost of Adoption Future
Originally posted on Red's Wrap:
I’m a member of a Facebook group of people who have or are going to adopt children from Nicaragua. I joined because we have three children adopted from Nicaragua but it was a long time ago – 1986,…
Thinking about Adoption? Ten Things to Ponder
Originally posted on Red's Wrap:
It’s that time of year when many people start thinking about adoption. The holidays, families coming together, often are the impetus for serious discussions about adoption. Frankly, sometimes I wonder why everybody doesn’t adopt children. Other times, I wonder why anyone…
Listen to Jan read her essay “Billy” presented on WUWM’s Lake Effect.
Jan’s essay “At the Breakfast Bar” on WUWM Lake Effect
Jan’s essay “The Parish Hall,” on WUWM Lake Effect May 27, 2020
“Fury Cannot Touch Me,” Modern Love, NYT, 9/29/11
