Meeting my father (and half brother)...
Last night I met my father and half brother for the first time in the parking lot of an Irving's gas station in Augusta, Maine. I couldn't have picked a more classic setting.
The meeting went very well. We all shook hands in the parking lot and agreed to enjoy some fine cuisine at Applebees. After being seated at our table, it took a few minutes to get comfortable dialogue going, but it happened. I didn't know what to expect in terms of what my father would look like, but when I saw him my first thought was, what else would he look like? I intended to have pictures here today, but as luck usually has it, my digital camera shit the bed just as I was about to start snapping away.
We stayed at Applebees until they were closing the place, but by then the whole staff knew our story, so they were just letting us have the run of the place. When they found out my camera wasn't working, a waitress offered to go to her car and get her digital. She said we could just keep the memory card; alas, when she got to her car, her camera was not there. Troy and I walked across the parking lot to Shaw's and bought a disposable. When those get developed I'll scan them and post some here.
I thought I would be angry when I met my father, but I wasn't. Then I was angry at myself for not being angry. I can't explain it, other than I'm getting older, I have a family of my own now... I just don't have the time to be angry. I also talked to my wife on the way up about how apprehensive I was... like I was losing a piece of my identity. However strange it may sound, not knowing my father was like some badge of honor -- like I was part of some exclusive club. But I feel fine now. The whole thing happened so fast, it's still very surreal.
If I haven't talked much about my half brother, it's because I still haven't quite come to terms with that. I already have younger brothers, and I'm comfortable with that dynamic. Plus, I always knew I had a father...but I didn't know I had another brother out there. For the record, our stories are very similar. He has known David longer, but went the first ten years or so of his life not knowing him. He also has younger brothers.
All that said, I'm still processing how I feel about the whole thing. More thoughts later...
The meeting went very well. We all shook hands in the parking lot and agreed to enjoy some fine cuisine at Applebees. After being seated at our table, it took a few minutes to get comfortable dialogue going, but it happened. I didn't know what to expect in terms of what my father would look like, but when I saw him my first thought was, what else would he look like? I intended to have pictures here today, but as luck usually has it, my digital camera shit the bed just as I was about to start snapping away.
We stayed at Applebees until they were closing the place, but by then the whole staff knew our story, so they were just letting us have the run of the place. When they found out my camera wasn't working, a waitress offered to go to her car and get her digital. She said we could just keep the memory card; alas, when she got to her car, her camera was not there. Troy and I walked across the parking lot to Shaw's and bought a disposable. When those get developed I'll scan them and post some here.
I thought I would be angry when I met my father, but I wasn't. Then I was angry at myself for not being angry. I can't explain it, other than I'm getting older, I have a family of my own now... I just don't have the time to be angry. I also talked to my wife on the way up about how apprehensive I was... like I was losing a piece of my identity. However strange it may sound, not knowing my father was like some badge of honor -- like I was part of some exclusive club. But I feel fine now. The whole thing happened so fast, it's still very surreal.
If I haven't talked much about my half brother, it's because I still haven't quite come to terms with that. I already have younger brothers, and I'm comfortable with that dynamic. Plus, I always knew I had a father...but I didn't know I had another brother out there. For the record, our stories are very similar. He has known David longer, but went the first ten years or so of his life not knowing him. He also has younger brothers.
All that said, I'm still processing how I feel about the whole thing. More thoughts later...
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