My name is Jared. I’m 25 years old, living in Ohio with a steady IT job, a girlfriend named Kate who tolerates more of my quirks than she should, and a dog I treat like my own child. By all accounts, life has been good to me. But recently, something happened that turned my sense of identity upside down—something that changed how I see myself, my family, and where I come from.
I was adopted as a baby. My parents were always honest about it. Growing up, I knew somewhere out there was a young woman who had given me life but couldn’t raise me. They kept one thing from her: a letter written in blue ink, tucked into a pink envelope sealed with a teddy bear sticker. Her name was Serena. She had been only 16 when she gave birth to me.
In that note she wrote, “I’m sorry I couldn’t be your mommy, but I hope you grow up happy and loved.” It was brief but full of raw emotion—a child writing to her child. I used to take that letter out sometimes and reread it. Even as a kid, I felt how much love and pain could fit onto a single page.
As I got older, I wondered what had become of her. Did she think about me? Did she ever regret her choice? I tried to find her once, but when my family moved for my dad’s job, whatever thread connected us snapped. Life went on: school, college, relationships, work.
Then, out of nowhere, I found her.
It happened on a road trip with Kate. We stopped at a small restaurant off the highway, the kind with checkered tablecloths and squeaky vinyl booths. A waitress walked up to our table, smiling—and the second I saw her, I knew. Her eyes, her smile, even the way she tucked her hair behind her ear matched the one old photo my adoptive mom had shown me. It was Serena.
She didn’t recognize me. That day, I said nothing. But I couldn’t shake it. Over the next three months, I made the two-hour drive back to that diner twice a week, ordering pie or coffee and sitting at the counter. She began to notice me. “Back again, huh? You must really love our pie,” she teased. I’d laugh, too nervous to tell her the truth.
Eventually, I knew I had to.
