November 12, 2001


Dear Michael,

There's a lot I would like to say to you
but the first word I think should be thankyou.
Thankyou for the gift of life but thankyou also
for coming forward.

I honestly did not expect to receive a response to my article.
I had come to terms with the fact
that I might never know your name.

My only wish is to know a little more about myself.
Please understand that you do not have to meet me
or correspond further than letters if you don't feel comfortable.
Though I am very curious to know what you look like.

I guess that you might like to know a bit about me.
I was born in 1981 at the Royal Women's Hospital.

I have been very lucky.
I grew up in West Gippsland on a 20 acre property
overlooking the Toomuc Valley, where I still live.

From the age of two I had my own horse
and rode competitively until I was 17.
I dreamed of going to the Olympics
like every little pony clubber.

I went to the local primary school
and then a private school nearby.
I completed my VCE in 1998.

I have always been very artistic.
I did ballet and then children's theatre for a while.

I dreamed of being an architect
and then an interior designer
but I excelled in illustration and design
and this is what I went on to study.

I graduated this year as a graphic designer
and in between my two jobs as a bartender
and child care worker I am looking
for a full time job.

As you would know from the article
I also have a full brother.
He will be 18 in December.

He has blond hair and blue eyes like me
but is a little taller and skinnier, like a rake.

He has ADHD.
He has a lot of trouble reading and writing
and dealing with complex issues such as DI.
You may have got the impression from the article
that we don't know where he inherited this from.
But we know for sure that he got it from mum.

He loves his motorbike(his freedom machine)
and is naturally athletic unlike me.
He left school in year nine and now works
as a blacksmith.

He knows how he was conceived
but does not yet know that I have your name.
Mum will tell him tonight perhaps.

You may be interested to know
that his name is Michael.

I have just a few questions for you to start with.
Please don't feel pressured to answer them.

Is anyone in your family left-handed?
(I'm a leftie but my brother, my mum and all her family
are righthanded)

Are you, or is anyone in your family artistic?

What did you study?

Where you given a choice as to whether
you wanted to be an anonymous donor?

Why did you donate?

Where are your family from?

I hope this is not too hard for you.
I only found out in March how I was conceived
so I too am still coming to terms with the fact
that you exist.

Please know that I am not looking for another father
only information. But I think of you now as a friend.

From my brother and I:
thankyou again for coming forward.

I hope to hear from you soon.



MW