When I was younger, I didn’t know my father. It was always hard to not think of who he might be as a person. I would always ask my mom, “Does he know about me? Does he have kids? A wife? A house? A  job?” I am positive that somewhere down the line, my mom became tired of the constant questions I was throwing at her.

A year after I was born, my father visited me for the first time on my birthday, then he left completely. My mom became a single mother and had to take care of me by herself up until I turned 6, when we moved to my grandparents’ house; they started helping her in that stressful journey. When my mom couldn’t afford something, my Nana or Papaw would be there to lend a helping hand. They would never let her go down a dark hole.

I would always hear stories about my father, but I never truly knew him. I never heard of anything good, only the bad. That’s why you should never judge a book by its cover. The year I turned 16, my whole world flipped upside down. My mom received a call from a girl named Annika. On this new discovery came a wave of emotional moments shared between Annika and me when I realized she is my older sister. 

She found out about me through my father’s old history records and saw my name under his. My mom had an equally as shocked reaction as I did after she handed me the phone. He had kept me a secret on his side of the family, indicating that nobody from his side knew about me for 16 years. Once Annika talked to my dad about me, he then spoke to Jessica, my stepmom, about the situation. This led me to find three other half-siblings who had no idea about me.

I have a whole new family and I am happy to be apart of it. After all of those years of not knowing my father’s side of the family, I have grown to accept that I now have two little brothers. Leeland is 2 and James is 6 and a half; to him, that half still counts. Then comes my younger sister, Evelynn, who is 15 years old.

I have come to accept that I am not like most teenagers. Some teenagers wouldn’t give their parents a second chance if they had been out of the picture for the majority of their life. I have come to accept that I am strong and holding grudges will never solve anything, only forgiveness will. 

I forgive my father for his absences.

Over the course of two and a half years, I made it a priority to become used to the new changes in my life. My mom, stepdad and grandparents are overjoyed for me, which is a bit unsettling because I didn’t know how to feel or react. Before my life was flipped upside down, I wasn’t as confident with myself until I met my other side. I am greatly proud of who I am today now because not just half, but my whole family will be there to support me and see me change in the upcoming years.