This is a true account. It is primarily a story about motherhood. But it is also a story about the "Ghost in the wishing well." That sentinel event in life which leads to a loss that remains as a lifelong scar. The ghost in the wishing well. The one which never will be set free as long as it's a ghost that you can't see. For surely giving up a child for adoption is akin to loosing that life as part of your life. Did the birth mother make the right decision? Would the child have a better life than the one she could have given her at the time? And the wanting. Searching for the birth mother can often be like pursuing an untamed ornithoid without cause. A wild goose chase. And frustrating. Especially if the life you have been adopted into is much like that of Annie and her hard-knock life friends. You wonder about your birth mother. 'Maybe' becomes the key word. The ship of dreams. Maybe far away. Or maybe real nearby. Betcha she's good. Why shouldn't she be? Her one mistake was giving up me! And then the overarching uncertainty of outcomes: "You may find that the having is not as good as the wanting." At the end of the day this story comes to a climax amidst the maelstrom of all the competing currents of life in America. The impact is far reaching beyond the lives of the major protagonists-the birth mother and the child given up for adoption. Others engaged include spouses, children, friends and extended families of both the birthmother and the child given up for adoption. And once the yearning for contact between birthmother and adoptive child becomes hope...which becomes possibility.....and then becomes imminent. How do the participants know if they will make appropriate decisions? How do they know that the contact will be a healing process and lead to the desired goals harbored by both the birth mother and the child given up for adoption? What about the impact on the immediate family? Spouses? Siblings?But there are ripples in the current of reality which often change the direction of one's fantasy ship. These ripples often turn to surging currents which impact the direction of the journey in ways unimaginable by those involved. Follow this story which was fifty years in the making to its unexpected but powerful climax and on to the Denouement. And what lies beyond.
About the Author: After spending twenty-one years in the United States Army, the author went on to a varied and successful career in Medicine. He is board certified in Pediatrics. The lessons learned while serving as Chief of Pediatrics and commanding were heeded. Lesson-as a physician you can make a difference in people's lives one person at a time. As a "Physician Executive"/ "Commander" the opportunity to help large groups of people became a reality. An example of this axiom was when Army Reserve and National Guard soldiers were deploying to Central America. Their medical assets which were not. of country. To a woman/man these units enthusiastically provided well woman exams and school physicals to the dependent population of Army, Navy, Marine, Coast Guard, and retirees in a four state Great Lakes region. Following this career objective, the author went from being a "Doc-In-The-Box" at an Urgent Care/Occupational Medicine Clinic immediately after retirement to serve as Medical Director for the Rocky Mountain Rehabilitation Center for which he received the RMRC Service Award. He became the Chief of Staff at the Cigna Staff Model in Long Beach, California where he was able to provide after-hours health care to a large segment of the community. During his tenure, the Long Beach Staff Model received the CIGNA" Superior Achievement Award." As the Medical Director post for The Traveler's Insurance Company, hewas involved with merging the Metropolitan Life and Traveler's Medical Plans to form Metra-Health. The author then served as the UnitedHealthCare Medical Director for the greater Los Angeles area. The author has served as Assistant Vice President for the Pharmacy Benefit Manager PCS where he developed utilization review and quality improvement processes for prescription drug care being provided to a national patient base. He served as an NCQA advisors for creation of national pharmacy criteria for health-plan accreditation. When the opportunity came to again serve the military active duty and retirement community. He became the Corporate Medical Director for the Health Care Contractor TriWest HealthCare Alliance, where he was able to use his health care experiences for this very deserving group of beneficiaries. Currently, the author owns his own Healthcare Consulting Company as well as obtaining a Masters of Public Administration (Health Care Organizations).