- In Conversation with Maria Haenga-Collins, adopted person and PhD Candidate I spoke to Maria Haenga-Collins, a PhD candidate in the Australian Centre for Indigenous History (School of History) at the Australian National University, about her studies and her experience of adoption. Maria is a Māori (Ngāti Porou, Te Aitanga-a-Mahaki, Ngāi Tahu) woman who was first fostered, then adopted, into a Pākehā (white) family in the mid […]
- Secrets, Spies and Spotted Dogs I spoke to Jane Eales about her book Secrets, Spies and Spotted Dogs. Jane I have read your book which gives a detailed account of your late discovery that you were adopted and subsequent search for family, particularly your mother. It’s a great title and absorbing read. Did writing the book come easy to you? […]
- Coming of Age ‘What if abandoning a child was the greatest act of love this world has ever known?’ This statement was made by Victor Alexeyev, one of five young adult adopted people, who spoke at the Coming of Age session at the Redefining Family conference in Auckland. Victor, along with Alex Gilbert, Alexander Kuch, Katya Murray and Voichita […]
- Counselling Experiences of Adult Adopted People I spoke with Sue Rogers about her Masters thesis and her experience of living with adoption. More about Sue I grew up in Melbourne and have lived there all my life. My parents have a holiday house on the Mornington Peninsula at an area that is not well known. It is quiet, has dirt roads, […]
- When Adoption is Forever Adoption is forever. Over the decades there have been few days when I haven’t thought about my adoption and its impact on my life. Adoption stays with you always. Consequently, you do need to make provision for it, make sense of it, or find peace with it, otherwise it is likely to prod, nag, itch, […]