I've Got A Lovely Bunch of Coconuts...
I had previously written about finding and meeting my brother Kimo in April. Since then, I've spoken to other siblings on the phone, but have yet to meet any more brothers and sisters. I figured that might have to wait until NEXT WEDNESDAY, July 7th, when Charlie, the kids and I will be flying to Hawaii. But I recently found out that I have a brother and a sister living in San Diego, which is only about 80 miles away from me.
I made the initial call to my sister Vicki. She also goes by her Hawaiian middle name, which is Lokelani, or Loke for short. She, just as all the other family members have been since I first "showed up" on the scene, was wonderful. Very happy and genuinely excited to speak with me, and even more excited that I wanted to meet her and my brother Lono as soon as possible. Lono's work schedule made it difficult because he works the graveyard shift. His only day off is Monday, so last week, I called Loke and asked her if she could arrange for she and Lono to come on June 28th. She called me back and said that would work perfectly for both of them. It was a date.
On Sunday, I was telling Charlie how nervous I was. Nervous, but excited. I hoped they would like me. I already loved them. This morning, I woke up early, kissed Charlie and saw him off to work. He said he wished he could stay and meet Loke and Lono, but he couldn't miss work. I told him there would be many more times. I started to tidy up the house, and even though she was tired from a busy day before, sweet Averie got up and helped me. That gave me an opportunity to prepare a nice pasta dish and salad for our lunch. At 9:30, Loke called and said that she and Lono had just left San Diego....she was giggling, which made me giggle. Here we were, 42, and 43 years old, and giggling like little girls on the phone.
At 11:15, they pulled up in front of the house and I felt my heart race. Averie and I ran to the door and there they were with the biggest smiles on their faces. I opened the door and grabbed Loke, almost knocking a big container of Harry & David munchies out of her hands. I hugged her so hard, and the best part was, she hugged me back, just as hard. We held each other for a moment and then I opened my eyes and saw Lono standing behind her. He smiled at me and said, "Hi Sis!" Tears started to well up in my eyes. I let Loke go and introduced her to Averie, who was standing behind me, and I turned to my brother and hugged him. He held me like he was never going to let go. By the time we got our hugs done, we were all teary-eyed.
We sat outside on the patio and pulled out photo albums. Within 30 minutes of their arrival, the phone rang. It was our brother Eddie in Hawaii. He knew we were getting together today and was excited for us. He wanted to call to be a part of the day. Eddie is in charge of organizing the big reunion luau next week. We all took turns talking to him on the phone and he told me he was thrilled that I was getting to meet Loke and Lono. I told him that I owed that to him since he was the one who told me about them and gave me their numbers so that I could contact them.
We talked about family and what it was like to be hanai'd (gifted out). Unlike my brother Kimo and the other siblings in Hawaii which I have yet to meet; Loke, Lono, and I were all adopted out. Loke and Lono were given to the same adoptive parents and were raised together. The difference between their adoption and mine, was that everyone in the family knew about them, but no one knew about me. They've had the opportunity to meet all of the family in Hawaii, including our birth parents. But, I've been a big surprise to all of the siblings. I'm like the girl who pops out of the cake at the end of the party. Okay, I wish...but you get my drift.
The day passed in the blink of an eye. Before we knew it, it was 7 pm and they needed to head back home. I couldn't believe how fast it went. I told them both how happy I was to be their sister. How wonderful it feels to "belong" and finally make some pieces of the puzzle fit together. Loke said she was SO happy to have a sister so close. Lono said that someone REALLY needed to contact Oprah. I told them that the saddest part was finding out that I had a brother and sister so close to me all this time, and never knowing. So much wasted time. I started to cry. They nodded. We hugged again.
Loke and Lono won't be able to attend the big "reunion" in Hawaii next week. Work issues make it an impossibility. But they made me promise that as soon as I got back from Hawaii on July 14th that I would call them and we would get together again to "talk story" and share pictures. They left with lots of my hugs, and all of my love. And I know that I have theirs in return.
I still feel hugged. It was a great day.
I had previously written about finding and meeting my brother Kimo in April. Since then, I've spoken to other siblings on the phone, but have yet to meet any more brothers and sisters. I figured that might have to wait until NEXT WEDNESDAY, July 7th, when Charlie, the kids and I will be flying to Hawaii. But I recently found out that I have a brother and a sister living in San Diego, which is only about 80 miles away from me.
I made the initial call to my sister Vicki. She also goes by her Hawaiian middle name, which is Lokelani, or Loke for short. She, just as all the other family members have been since I first "showed up" on the scene, was wonderful. Very happy and genuinely excited to speak with me, and even more excited that I wanted to meet her and my brother Lono as soon as possible. Lono's work schedule made it difficult because he works the graveyard shift. His only day off is Monday, so last week, I called Loke and asked her if she could arrange for she and Lono to come on June 28th. She called me back and said that would work perfectly for both of them. It was a date.
On Sunday, I was telling Charlie how nervous I was. Nervous, but excited. I hoped they would like me. I already loved them. This morning, I woke up early, kissed Charlie and saw him off to work. He said he wished he could stay and meet Loke and Lono, but he couldn't miss work. I told him there would be many more times. I started to tidy up the house, and even though she was tired from a busy day before, sweet Averie got up and helped me. That gave me an opportunity to prepare a nice pasta dish and salad for our lunch. At 9:30, Loke called and said that she and Lono had just left San Diego....she was giggling, which made me giggle. Here we were, 42, and 43 years old, and giggling like little girls on the phone.
At 11:15, they pulled up in front of the house and I felt my heart race. Averie and I ran to the door and there they were with the biggest smiles on their faces. I opened the door and grabbed Loke, almost knocking a big container of Harry & David munchies out of her hands. I hugged her so hard, and the best part was, she hugged me back, just as hard. We held each other for a moment and then I opened my eyes and saw Lono standing behind her. He smiled at me and said, "Hi Sis!" Tears started to well up in my eyes. I let Loke go and introduced her to Averie, who was standing behind me, and I turned to my brother and hugged him. He held me like he was never going to let go. By the time we got our hugs done, we were all teary-eyed.
We sat outside on the patio and pulled out photo albums. Within 30 minutes of their arrival, the phone rang. It was our brother Eddie in Hawaii. He knew we were getting together today and was excited for us. He wanted to call to be a part of the day. Eddie is in charge of organizing the big reunion luau next week. We all took turns talking to him on the phone and he told me he was thrilled that I was getting to meet Loke and Lono. I told him that I owed that to him since he was the one who told me about them and gave me their numbers so that I could contact them.
We talked about family and what it was like to be hanai'd (gifted out). Unlike my brother Kimo and the other siblings in Hawaii which I have yet to meet; Loke, Lono, and I were all adopted out. Loke and Lono were given to the same adoptive parents and were raised together. The difference between their adoption and mine, was that everyone in the family knew about them, but no one knew about me. They've had the opportunity to meet all of the family in Hawaii, including our birth parents. But, I've been a big surprise to all of the siblings. I'm like the girl who pops out of the cake at the end of the party. Okay, I wish...but you get my drift.
The day passed in the blink of an eye. Before we knew it, it was 7 pm and they needed to head back home. I couldn't believe how fast it went. I told them both how happy I was to be their sister. How wonderful it feels to "belong" and finally make some pieces of the puzzle fit together. Loke said she was SO happy to have a sister so close. Lono said that someone REALLY needed to contact Oprah. I told them that the saddest part was finding out that I had a brother and sister so close to me all this time, and never knowing. So much wasted time. I started to cry. They nodded. We hugged again.
Loke and Lono won't be able to attend the big "reunion" in Hawaii next week. Work issues make it an impossibility. But they made me promise that as soon as I got back from Hawaii on July 14th that I would call them and we would get together again to "talk story" and share pictures. They left with lots of my hugs, and all of my love. And I know that I have theirs in return.
I still feel hugged. It was a great day.
posted by Pua; Bakin' and Tendin' Bar | 7:27 PM
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