text: Author's note: This is based on a real life situation. Names have been changed to protect people in the story. As Jade brushed her long dark silky black hair out, her phone buzzed. She put down her hairbrush to pick it up. She stared at the text the came through, shocked and a little unsure. Hi, it’s mom. Call me when you can. I’d love to try to reconnect with you, and I thought we could hang out sometime this weekend and maybe see a movie or do some shopping together. Jade put her phone down and thought about this for awhile. Since she was four, Jade had lived with her Aunt Mimi and Uncle Ashton. Her mom had been around off and on, but Jade had always felt estranged from her real mother due to the fact she had been raised by her aunt and uncle. She appreciated the thought of her mother reaching out to her and wanting to get to know her better, but she wasn’t quite sure she was ready yet to hang out and try to reconnect a relationship with her. She picked her brush back up and started brushing her thick black hair again. Her little “sister” Starla ran into her room. Starla was Mimi and Ashton’s daughter and Jade’s cousin. Starla ran up and gave Jade a big hug. “I love you, Jade,” she said to her big “sister”. Jade looked down at Starla and smiled. She loved her little sister, but she also missed her half-sister and brother on her mom’s side -- Ophelia and James -- a lot. “Starla, is your dad here?” Jade asked. Jade had grown really close to Ashton in the days of her youth. He had taken her into his arms and accepted her as his own daughter. Unfortunately, Mimi and Ashton had decided not to stay together, which saddened Jade. Starla shook her head no. When Jade felt sad, she often went downstairs to visit Grandma Nan. Grandma Nan was always there to listen. “What’s the matter, Jade?” Her grandmother made a cup of tea for her and sat down at the table next to her. “My mom texted me. She wants to spend some time with me.” Grandma’s face brightened. “That’s a good thing, Jade” -- looking at Jade’s downcast face -- “isn’t it?” Jade looked thoughtful, mulling it over for a minute. “Well, I do want to spend time with my half-siblings...” Jade began. “Ophelia loves you a lot.” Grandma Nan smiled at Jade. “So does your mom.” Jade’s mom was her Aunt Mimi’s sister, and Grandma Nan was mother to Mimi and Kathryn both. Jade sipped her tea, thinking again. She set her cup down. “I’m 14. I haven’t really lived with my mom since I was 4. I don’t know how to reconnect with her!” Jade put her head in her hands. Grandma Nan lifted her chin up with a gentle finger. A single tear rolled down Jade’s cheek. “Does that make me a bad person?” Jade asked quietly. “No, absolutely not.” Her grandmother pulled her in close for a hug. “You’re a wonderful person, Jade, and your mother knows this. That’s why she would like to reconnect with you. She does love you -- a lot.” “But sometimes it seems like she loves Ophelia and James better than me. I mean, she gave me up, but still raises those two.” Grandma Nan held Jade close to her. “Jade, your mother loves you very much. She would so like to be a part of your life. She probably misses you, sees you’re growing up so beautifully, and wants to get to know you better.” Jade again mulled over what her grandmother was saying to her. The more she thought about it, the more she knew her grandmother was right, but it still hurt that her mother would give her up and raise two more children. Grandma Nan watched Jade closely. “Jade, your mother does love you very much. She wanted to raise you, but she just wasn’t ready at the time. By the time your half-siblings were born, she was in a more secure place.” “I don’t even know my mom’s husband!” Jade cried out, hot tears spilling down her cheeks. “Jade, honey, it’s okay”-- Jade stood up abruptly. “You know what? You’re right.” Grandma Nan blinked at this rapid change in Jade. Jade sat back down. “Maybe she just didn’t know how to love me, but one question: Why did it take her this long to reach out to me?” Grandma Nan stroked Jade’s hair and wiped the tears from her cheeks. “Maybe she just had a hard time figuring out how to fit you back into her life -- a life that is totally different than how it was when you were born, Jade. She’s changed a lot, and so has her life. She's trying to raise your siblings now and still have you as part of her life. It’s hard. She doesn’t know where to start with the reconnection. So much has changed since you were born, Jade. I know one thing for sure, though -- she does love you and always has.” Jade smiled through her tears, hugged her grandma, and replied back, “I’m going to go call her now. I would love a shopping date and to see a movie -- with my mom. My real mom.” Grandma Nan beamed at her granddaughter. “Go bond with her. You need it.” Kathryn’s ringtone went off. She picked up her phone. Jade flashed across the caller ID screen. She smiled. “Hello?” she answered as she lifted her cell to her ear. “Mom, I want to hang out with you and get to know you better.” Kathryn was so happy, tears of joy streamed down her face. “Oh, Jade! I’m so happy you called!” she gushed. “What would you like to do?” “Well, there is there are these really cool jeans at the mall I really like, and I would love to see The Croods: A New Age with you, Mom.” Kathryn felt a huge grin working the corners of her mouth. She loved to hear her first-born daughter calling her “mom”. It felt great. This was the beginning of a newfound relationship she hoped would last forever. Jade felt a warm glow after hanging up. She was going to see her mom, her real mom for the first time in a long time. She was excited.