Then it hit me. This Mom was different； she wasn’t going to get rid of me. She really did love me. And I realized I loved her， too. I cried and hugged her.
In 1985， when Mom formally adopted me， our whole family celebrated at a restaurant. It felt good belonging to someone. But I was still scared. Could a mom really love me forever？ My tantrums didn’t disappear immediately， but as months passed， they happened less often.
Today I’m 16. I have a 3.4 grade point average， a horse named Dagger’s Point， four cats， a dog， six doves and a bullfrog that lives in our backyard pond. And I have a dream： I want to be a veterinarian.
Mom and I like to do things together， like shopping and horseback riding. We smile when people say how much we look alike. They don’t believe she’s not my real mom.
I’m happier now than I ever imagined I could be. When I’m older， I’d like to get married and have kids， but if that doesn’t work out， I’ll adopt like Mom did. I’ll pick a scared and lonely kid and then never， ever give up on her. I’m so glad Mom didn’t give up on me.
我躺在地板上，疯狂地蹬腿和狂叫，直到声音嘶哑，这都是因为我的养母非要我把玩具收起来。
“我恨你。”我尖叫着，当时我六岁，不明白我为什么那么生气。
我两岁时被人收养。生母不能给予我们姐妹六人所需要的照顾。我们也没有父亲或是其他人来照料，于是我们被送到不同的养父母家里。我感到孤独、烦恼，不知道怎么跟别人诉说我内心的伤痛。发脾气成了我宣泄情感的唯一途径。
因为我很调皮，最终，我现在的养母又把我送回了收养所，正如我先前的那位母亲一样。我觉得自己确实是一个最不招人喜欢的女孩。
后来，我见到凯特·麦肯。那时我七岁，她来看我时，我正跟我的第三任养父母住在一起。养母告诉我，凯特是单身，想收养一个孩子，我不知道她会选择我。我无法想象有人会愿意让我跟他们永远生活在一起。