Year of 1962 …

In The Beginning!

“And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.” Psalm 9:10

What better place to start than ‘the beginning’? At least it was the beginning of a new life for me, but that beginning didn’t get underway until  late summer in 1962, August 27th to be exact, when I was 7 years old (half grown!).  I have talked to my adoptive mother, who is my only living parent at the time of this writing.  She told me that too many years have passed for her to recall details of the adoption.   According to her, she & my dad brought me home for a weekend (or two) to see how I got along in the home with her biological daughter who was 10 years old.  Mom told me that she would have  preferred to get a baby, however they were discouraged from that by the adoption agency due to the older age of the child that was already in the home.  My dad told me on two separate occasions that they really wanted my younger brother John but had been told that the adoption agency policy was to adopt the elder child first and that required them to take me instead of John because I was the eldest of the four Bush children. So, what it boils down to is that I became their son by default, not by choice.  It’s kind of like getting picked last when team leaders pick their teammates and you are the only one left to pick; only this happened in reverse.

Below is the only known picture of my early years. I am pictured in the center of this image along with my two best friends, Shirley & John. Over the years it had always been my desire to eventually locate them and hopefully someday meet them face to face.

I was the oldest of five children that my biological parents offered up for adoption.  I really don’t know the full reason behind their decision to  give us up for adoption, although my biological dad, in a cassette tape recording that he sent to me in the 1980’s, offered a feeble attempt in explaining ‘why’.  Most of the tape was rambling, on the tape I was told that after he signed the required paperwork he regretted what he had done and desperately wanted to go back and ‘undo’ it.

I have two half-sisters and four blood brothers & sisters.  All seven of us were born within about 8 years. That’s a little over one year between each one of us.  One sister (Elaine), who I knew as Sally, was adopted by an aunt who lived in Ottumwa, IA.  Ottumwa was the city of residence of my maternal grandfather Lawrence and his 2nd wife Virginia.  The other four of us were adopted through the American Home Finding Association also located in Ottumwa,IA.  As you will see in future posts, Lawrence was instrumental in the initiation of our reunion and also for my being able to meet at least ONE of my siblings.

At the time of the adoption, when I was about to depart the ‘home’, my brother John gave me a toy of  his which I treasured.  It was a beige colored plastic  horse that had one of it’s legs broken off.  Every time I saw that horse it reminded me of him.  One day it came up missing. As time went by that keepsake apparently made it’s way to the landfill, because I was never able to find it again.  My mom told me that she had thrown it away because it was broken.  She had no idea what it had to meant to me…

There were two keepsakes that I had as I left the ‘home’.  One being the horse that my brother John had given to me.  The other item was a small promotional brochure that the American Home Finding Association used for years.  John’s picture was on the front cover (pictured below).  He remained their ‘poster’ child for many years.  In fact, when I went back to the AHFA to celebrate their 100th Anniversary I asked about that brochure because I was unable to find the one that my parents had in the cupboard.  In a matter of seconds, Tom, the director of the home, went straight to a file cabinet and retrieved another one for me which was good as new (only faded with age).

As I conclude this first page, I want to post two more pictures of my siblings, Shirley Joyce & John Harold.  Shirley was 1yr  younger than me and John was 2yrs younger.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And finally, a picture of the AMERICAN HOME FINDING ASSOCIATION, Ottumwa, IA.

There were some tough years to follow, but God was faithful through it all.  Even as a child with no formal Christian education, I believed in God and I am so grateful that he has never forsaken me.  I am also confident that He never will!  It is rather interesting at this stage of my life to look back and be able to actually ‘see’ the Hand of God working in my life.  He has helped me to overcome countless obstacles.  As I read the book of Revelation in the Bible there are multiple scriptures that talk about the reward that awaits the overcomer.  One of the first such scriptures that I memorized as a young Christian was Revelation 3:21 “To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne”