My first reunion went badly, and then I found my cousin
Bandar Anzali, 2016. Two hours that I spent three years calling a failure. The second meeting gave me a family — and it only happened because I did not stop.
SShabnam Ortega26 Sept 2026
Barcelona, Spain · from Bandar Anzali
Reunited twice — with a sister and then with a cousin.
My first reunion ended badly and my second one gave me a family. I tell both stories, because adoptees need to hear that a difficult first meeting is not the end of the search.
Written here, published by them. The Jatkhali team can unpublish anything, but the words are theirs.
Bandar Anzali, 2016. Two hours that I spent three years calling a failure. The second meeting gave me a family — and it only happened because I did not stop.