Adopt
Origin: Middle English, from Middle French or Latin; Middle French adopter, from Latin adoptare, from ad- + optare to choose
transitive verb
1: to take by choice into a relationship; especially: to take voluntarily (a child of other parents) as one’s own child
2: to take up and practice or use <adopted a moderate tone>
3: to accept formally and put into effect <adopt a constitutional amendment>
4: to choose (a textbook) for required study in a course
5: to sponsor the care and maintenance of <adopt a highway>
intransitive verb
: to adopt a child <couples choosing to adopt>
(Merriam-Webster Dictionary)
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“Paano pala namatay ang mommy mo?”
“Diabetic kasi siya”
“Hala. Dapat ikaw mag dahan-dahan ka.”
“Di man. Di man ako maapektuhan.”
“Bakit man?”
“Adopted kasi ako.”
I am an adopted child. My parents told me when I was 10 years old. They thought it was the right time to tell me that I was because I was starting to ask questions and wondered why people looked at me differently during family gatherings. I also wondered why my playmates would call me ―adopted whenever we had a fight during one of our games.
“May gusto kami sabihin sa iyo”
“Maalala mo noon na may nagasabi sa iyo na adopted ka lang?”
“Totoo?”
“Oo”
That was how my parents broke the news to me that I was indeed an adopted child. My tears that night represented every moment of my childhood where I felt confused why my playmates teased and why my relatives looked at me as if they were wondering how and why I got in to the family.
My mom said I met my real mother once. She wanted me to remember that day. She wanted me to remember the scene when I saw this woman sitting in front of her desk, crying. I did remember. But I couldn’t picture out the face of that woman. I couldn’t even remember how I felt when I saw that woman. My mom said I could meet her again. I said yes. But deep inside I felt it was unnecessary because I was not looking for her and didn’t feel the need to see her.
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