A Pleasant Surprise

When I was in junior high, I used to volunteer as a junior counselor for the summer program at the park behind my house. It was basically like mini-summer camp for neighborhood kids and ran most of the summer. There were also senior counselors who were usually high school or college age kids who actually got paid for their work. One year, I worked with a senior counselor named Omar. He was really friendly and easy-going and one time I even ran into him at Southdale Mall. We didn't keep in touch, though.

Yesterday, I went to Children's Home Society and Family Services to do an adopted persons panel for prospective adoptive parents. When I and the other panel members walked into the room, I noticed that there was an African-American man among the prospective parents, which is rare. Adoptive parents tend to be almost exclusively white. In any event, I noticed him, figured "Cool. Good for him," and that was that.

A few minutes later, however, when I introduced myself and said I had grown up in St. Louis Park, the guy lit up with this smile of recognition, and I thought maybe he was from St. Louis Park or something like that. And then, when the questions started, he raised his hand and said, "Julia, I don't know if you remember, but we worked at the park together." And instantly, I recognized him. It was most definitely Omar, from way back when. He joked a little about how it was nice to see me grown up, and I was just kind of speechless with surprise.

Apparently he and his wife are thinking of adopting, and they're considering both Ethiopia and Korea. He asked us if we thought it would be difficult adopting from Korea because of his race. I answered that it wouldn't be so hard here in the States, but if he ever went back to Korea with his child, it would be very hard, because Korean society is so conservative.

After the panel, I went over to talk briefly with him and his wife. He said he's living in Crystal now, and teaching in Richfield. He and his wife already have a 6-year-old daughter, and their daughter wants a little sister, so they are looking into adoption. I wanted to talk more, but there was another panel after ours, and I didn't want to hold things up. But it was just such a wonderful surprise to run into someone from so many years ago and have them remember me and be so friendly, and then even more so to have this new connection over adoption.