EXTENDING FAMILY

My distant "granddaughter" Julianna.

I have mentioned before that I don't have many relatives. I grew up in a wonderful, but small nuclear family, wishing all the time that I had about twelve brothers and sisters - or (strangely) that I lived in an orphanage surrounded by children. I had/have only a very few cousins and of those, I saw only three or four of them when we traveled back to Iowa a couple of times a year. I was playing with "imaginary siblings" until I was twelve, at least!

Since I've been grown up, I've not even seen my distant and unknown cousins, and have resigned myself, for many years, to a very. quiet. life. At least as regards family! All the more so when my brother died from hemochromotosis at a young age, and then when my dad passed away a couple of years later.

But all was not lost! When it seemed that my own family would be small, the miracle of adoption enlarged it. And now, it seems to be extending itself again......

I was so pleased and heartwarmed to get the following letter from Sergei's sister, Nadia:

Hello my Dear relatives. How are you? How is your health? How did Seriozha do in school this year? Dear Annie, please can you tell me when your birthday is?

... I am very happy that Seriozha has wonderful parents like you. You have become like relatives for me, too. You are very kind people. Seriozha is very lucky. I would like to have the same parents, too. This is so wonderful when you have parents. I know how bad life is without them. Very often Julianna is asking me, "Who's on this photo?" I will explain to her, "This is your Uncle Seriozha and your grandmother Annie." Then she asks me "When will they come to visit us?" I explained to her, "They live in America very far away from here." Julia is a very sweet girl. ... We wrote this letter together. She says she loves you, Uncle Seriozha and Grandmother Annie very much! She asks Seriozha to please listen to your mom and dad. Love them and help them. Please remember us. We always look for your letters.

So, we can tell one thing for sure (which makes me love her) - Nadia is a doting mother! It really does make me happy to think that I have these new family members....even if they are far away. I hope so much that we can visit them some day. The time may come! [The money may come.] Meanwhile, we have the chance to communicate a bit, for which I'm grateful.

I cannot imagine what their life is like. I'd hatched a plan to bring Nadia and Julianna over here for a visit. But a Russian friend, and intermediary, told me that I simply didn't understand. That even getting out of their tiny settlement is difficult for Nadia - just buying food is hard for her. Getting to the place where she would obtain a passport and a visa would be near impossible, to say nothing about paying for it. Of course, we'd pay for it, but I can see that the logistics are too difficult right now. And I've no way of helping with those.

So, I hope that someday we can visit her. She is in the Rostov region - not in an area of Russia where I know anyone, so it would be quite an adventure, indeed! I'll keep my fingers crossed that someday it will be come a reality.