A Timeline

In May of 2019 I took a DNA test for fun. Up until that point, I was raised biracial. Spanish on the mother's side, and Indian on the father's side. Here's a timeline of events that followed:
  • 5/24/2019 - Ancestry DNA received my sample.
  • 6/8/2019 - Ancestry DNA results - I am 100% Eastern Indian. Apparently I'm not biracial.
  • 6/9/2019 - Parents denied the results. Told me those DNA tests are usually wrong and that my father's DNA is stronger.  Hence the 100% Indian results.
  • 6/11/2019 - Bought a 23andMe kit from Target.
  • 6/14/2019 - 23andMe received my sample.
  • 6/21/2019 - 23andME results - 100% Southern and Eastern Indian.
  • 6/25/2019 - Emailed my parents both results seeking out answers.
  • 7/10/2019 - A-mom confirmed via text message that yes, I was adopted.
  • 8/11/2019 - A-mom provided details about the adoption.
  • 8/15/2019 - A-dad provided more details. Confirmed some of a-mom's details, and corrected a few of her details that she most likely lied about.
  • 9/18/2019 - Sent VS-145 form to Texas Vital & Health Statistics - Adult Adoptee Application for Non-Certified Copy of Original Birth Certificate.
  • 9/20/2019 - Older sister comes to visit. She now  knows she's adopted as well.
  • 9/21/2019 - A-parents arrive. Sat down with them to go over this new traumatic experience they've caused. I have written about this, the post is titled "The Visit", not to be confused with M. Night Shyamalan's film with the same title. It did not go quite the way I expected, just like the plot of M. Night's Shyamalan's film. But it was cathartic for me to just take back control of my identity.
  • 9/26/2019 - Received a response from Texas VHS. Unfortunately they did not have a copy of my original birth certificate. Advised to submit form VS-143 - Request for Court of Adoption in order to find out which court to appeal for my adoption paperwork.
  • 11/??/2019 -  Sent VS-143 form.
  • 2/29/2020 - Response from Texas VHS arrived in the mail for VS-143 information. Now I know which court the adoption took place. More surreal was seeing my name next to the word "Adoptee" on a official piece of paper. Now to figure out how to appeal the court and not get denied.
  • A pandemic occurs. My search feels like it's stuck in limbo. But I find that there is another form I can submit to immigration to get a lot more information regarding my adoption. It is the G-639 form, Freedom of Information/Privacy Act Request.
  • 4/25/2020 - Filed the G-639 (Freedom of Information Act) form online with USCIS to obtain my Alien File. Now to wait and see what happens.
  • 4/29/2020 - Reply from USCIS for G-639 form. "No records responsive to your request were located." Fucking hell... Another roadblock.
  • 8/8/2020 - A-dad sends over a scan of the Decree of Adoption. I now officially have a paperwork with my original name. Anoop.
  • 4/19/2021 - Filed a motion to unseal my records with the Texas court using their E-file site.
  • 4/20/2021 - Order signed by the Judge. Received my adoption paperwork! All 51 pages!
* I will update this as events progress.

Popular posts from this blog

Not Applicable

Image
I've been away from social media for a while now. Even blogging. Last year I took a break from a lot of it. And as 2023 slowly rolled in, I still took my time. There was just too much going on. Trying to be present and in the moment while still balancing all the emotions. In 2021, I was working with a lawyer on getting any paperwork via FOIA request from US Custom and Border Protection, and the Department of State. USCIS turned up empty. On May 4th of this year, after nearly 3 years of when I initially started all this, DOS responded and they had nothing on file for me, aside from one passport application from 2002. I suddenly found myself in a position where my citizenship status in this country was unknown. I wondered if my adoption was done correctly. And I was even advised not to vote. Anxiety. Stress. Worry. Would I be deported? Could I be? What about my job? So many unknowns. And anger. All this because what? Two people adopted me and then lied. And proceeded to lie still, an
Read more

India's Social Orphans

Image
I came across the above Indian based podcast called  The Filter Koffee Podcast  hosted by Karthik Nagarajan. He sits with a guest and as he describes it, has a conversation. “The kind that leaves you richer. The kind that only coffee can bring out.” In this particular episode released in January of 2022, he sat down with Poulomi Pavini Shukla, a supreme court lawyer, and spoke about orphans in India. This particular episode was titled “Why India's orphans are twice abandoned?” Without getting into too many details of the podcast, here are a few key topics they went over: The different schemes that have been put in place for children in need of care. (Government Schemes in India are launched by the government to address the social and economic welfare of its citizens) The money/budget put towards orphans. Which equates to less than 1 rupee per day per child. The estimated number of orphans in India as reported by UNICEF. How orphanages are run and how many should be set up in each d
Read more

To Tell or Not To Tell

 Every now and then I get asked the question. “Hey Kris, I know someone that’s adopted, but they don’t know it. Should I tell them?” This is a question that I have given a lot of thought to over the last few years. And what I’ve realized is that it’s not a matter of IF you should tell them, it’s WHEN and HOW. I firmly believe that everyone deserves to know their truth. It is, without a doubt, abusive when a “parent” lies to their ward leading them to believe that they are their biological parents. So what then? Honestly, you really just have two choices. You either don’t tell them and let things run their course, or you do tell them. Just know that sooner or later, somehow or the other, they will find out. There is no good way to go about it. Whether or not you tell them the truth, there is absolutely no way in which this experience won’t be traumatic. This is an upending, identity-shattering mindfuck. When I think about my experience as an LDA, it infuriates me at times to think about
Read more