Birth Country Travel: Language & Identity This is part 3 in a series on international adoption and identity. For most kids on a homeland journey, language and the ability to communicate is an immediate piece of how they see themselves. Very few are able to speak in their birth language. As a result, their first interaction with people in their … Read More
Identity & Birth Country Travel: Upon Arrival
Identity is a continuum. Who I am today is not who I will be tomorrow. For tomorrow I will be a culmination of who I have been in all my “yesterdays” and who I hope to be in my “tomorrows.” This is part 2 in a series on identity and international adoption. Birth Country Travel: Upon Arrival Creating a New … Read More
Identity: Do Adoptees Need to Know The Past?
About This Article Series This is the first in a series of articles on identity building and international adoption. Over the past 20 years, we have learned a LOT about what is important to adoptees as they take the giant step of visiting their birth country. We hope you enjoy the series from Adoptive Family Travel by The Ties Program … Read More
Citizenship is Sticky
Recently I was working on passport and visa information for one of our new programs. My assignment was to draft a letter to explain the visa application process to parents. We consulted Embassy websites. We connected with people and sent emails for clarification. Laws and standard operating procedures appeared incongruent and frustrating, to say the least. At the heart of … Read More