Family news

[agm]

I was an only child for nearly 43 years.

Yesterday, wasting time on Facebook, I saw something that caused me to question that little fact. I sent out a quick message, and today got the confirmation. I was, in fact, an only child for about seven years, not 43. It turns out that I have a sister. No, wait, make that two sisters. Oh, yeah, and a brother, too. Not to mention at least two nephews and a niece.

So, how has your day been?

[Gunny]

Congratulations! Times Three!

[Jeff Storey]

ok, THAT is really cool! Congrats man.

I didnt know you were on facebook tho...friend me dude!

[Rich McClain]

That's cool, Adam. Well, I'll be. What's the backdate on birthday presents going to be like? Congratulations!

[agm]

By my count, that's about 98 birthdays, just with my brother and sisters. Add in their kids, and who knows?

[FrankH]

You win! Wow.

[CelticElf66]

Wow, how cool is that?

[Mrs. T-Bone]

Assuming that's a good thing... Congratulations, You're a Brother!

[angry ant]

That's amazing. I hope there's a good story behind it all. Are your siblings in the region, or scattered all around?

[agm]

That's amazing. I hope there's a good story behind it all. Are your siblings in the region, or scattered all around?

Here's the story: My parents separated when I was three. I lived with my mother in New York (and later New England); my father was living in Puerto Rico. I last saw him when I was 10, in 1976. At that point, he had recently remarried. We lost touch, and I never got any updates on his life. He died in 1994, and I didn't find out until years later.

So, I was bored a few weeks ago and searched for my father's last name on Facebook. I found a couple of pages where people were looking for family info, and saw one person who gave her father's name - same as my father. I sent her a message, and the next morning we confirmed that she's my sister.

I don't have the full story yet - it's been a crazy few weeks. But I have two sisters, born two years apart. They didn't grow up with my father, and didn't even meet him until the older sister was five. And then they lost touch until the older sister looked him up when she was 19. Both sisters were born before I last saw our father, but he never mentioned them. I don't know what the story is with him and their mother. They obviously never lived together, but it wasn't a one-night-stand, either, since they had two kids. After that, when my father remarried, he and his wife had a son, about five years after I last saw him. They stayed together until my father died. He told his son about me; I don't know if he told him about the sisters, but they eventually met when the older sister found our father.

Nobody's in the area. My sisters live in Puerto Rico. My brother grew up there, but eventually went to graduate school in Spain, and is now studying in Austria.