Category: National Adoption Awareness Month
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The Truth Shall Set You Free
Collected in The Smudged Hyphen (2026). The ring lies on the ledge inside the shower stall. I remember to bring it outside when I am done. I wipe it dry and inspect it in the flickering bathroom light. Teal and silver, it is nondescript. I slip it on my finger, it is loose. I slide…
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National Adoption Awareness Month – NAAM 2022
Each year as National Adoption Awareness Month (NAAM) rolls around, my feed is filled with opinions, thoughts and notes from people connected to adoption in many different ways. In the past I have been vocal about sharing our experiences. Over time, I have grown (hopefully wiser) and have paused to reflect and emphasize the AWARENESS…
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#NAAM No One Size Fits All
A chance conversation with my daughters’ mother yesterday had me thinking long and hard about the past eleven years that have defined my life, my identity and, influenced my creative work. With so much focus on adoption this month surrounding NAAM (National Adoption Awareness Month), I have been a curious onlooker. Early in my life…
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Article In Brown Girl Magazine
I have a piece up on Brown Girl Magazine today. Hop over and check it out if you have not done already.
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#NAM2018 National Adoption Awareness Month: What Can Adoptive Parents Do?
Each November adoptionland is rife with op-eds, hashtags, conferences, panels and social media blitzes by all members of the triad. #FlipTheScript was all I heard over the past few years. I listened hard and reflected on what I heard. Some years, I wrote about my experience with openness in the context of our lives. This…
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Of Struggling With Labels
Collected in The Smudged Hyphen (2026). “I don’t like my fake name” muttered Ammu, my first daughter. I was bent over the stove tossing rice noodles in a base of lemon and sesame oil. The heady aroma of tempered mustard and curry leaves almost made me miss the statement. A part of me always attuned…
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Rumination on fears and insecurities
In a day, November will firmly belong in the past and the count down to the New Year will begin. All through this month, I have been reading and absorbing the viewpoints of Adoptees, Birth families and Adoptive families. I have been following the #FlipTheScript tag on Twitter. As I read each piece filled with…
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Awareness Not Applause
It is November. November of NaNoWriMo fame. November of Adoption Awareness fame. Over the past few years, I have stood on the sidelines watching Adoption agencies turn it into an advertising blitz. I have seen tearful paeans being sung to the institution of adoption by parents like me. I have seen angst filled posts by…