I've had a pretty untraditional childhood.
It started off with a mom and a dad who Planned & spawned me with love & the best of intentions.

But things change.
My mom isn't the healthiest mind around and pretty soon
Social services stepped in and broke my family up.

I suffered a lot of abuse as a kid,
But through all of that my dad was a hero,
Working hard every day to regain custody of me
And help heal my damage.

My dad is really the best dad in the whole world.
I have yet to see another man so completely
Devoted to and in love with his offspring.

Ask anyone who knows him;
My dad is a rare and precious element.

So, while he was fighting to get me out of foster care,
He met someone, my Co-Dad.

It was hard arranging ourselves as a family.
Co-Dad & I fought a lot in a pretty typical
Step-Parent/Child relationship and it was torture for all of us.

I was a pretty messed up little kid.

I'd been hurt a lot and had my mom taken away
Before I ever really got the chance to know her.

My two dads had a hard row to hoe,
Helping me grow & flourish despite the hurt & hatred I felt.

I think it's only really now as a quasi-adult
That my family works out at all.

It's been a bitter battle at times,
But I love my folks tremendously and respect them much more
Than I think they realize.

I didn't see my mom again until I was about 14.
I hadn't been allowed to.

When I finally met her again, her disease had really eaten up
The things I knew had been so wonderful.
I had always known of my mother as this fierce and splendid warrior.
To see her so small and in such disarray was crushing.

Except for a brief appearance at my graduation,
I haven't seen her since.
That's been my choice, and a tremendous source of guilt.
Life has been brutally unfair to her.
Just when she seemed to find stability & some peace,
Her family was pulled out from under her feet.

First the government took her kid away,
And then her kid couldn't bear to see her.

I hope someday soon I'll be strong enough
To try and get to know her.

Most of my life, the people I considered family
Were rarely genetically linked to me.

I'm used to fostering family from common passions,
Ideas & lifestyles.
I'm closer to Aaron's family than much of my own.
The way my parents meshed with his is pretty neat.

Aaron's mom in particular has deeply touched me.
She is one of the most beautiful people I've met.
I feel intense love & respect for his dad, also...
But his mom opened up more as a person.

I'm lucky to have such good people for family.
My aunt & uncle are wonderful and witty individuals
And there's a small herd of kinsfolk spattered around the nation
That are truly spectacular human beings.

There are a lot of people out there that I love
And consider kindred.

Throughout my life, they have been my strongest support
And my life source.

From them I picked up genes, philosophies, behaviors, language,
Senses of humor, ideas & attitudes towards life.
They've been my amino acids - It all started with them.
I wish they all knew how fiercely and vulnerably I love them.

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