Through the Heart: A personal journey of discovery and survival

Book Synopsis: Even as a young child, Doug always knew he was adopted but it was never really important to him. That is, until, alcoholism, an untimely death, and drug addiction ripped away at the facade in which he lived. As a teen, desperate to understand his origin and the circumstances of his birth, Doug began to look for hints and bread crumbs about his past. But the muddy waters of his life swirled and moved him in very unexpected ways during his journey, threatening, at times, to drown him. In his journey to survive his circumstances, and possibly succeed in understanding who his birth parents were and why they had given him up for adoption, Doug was presented with false starts and dead ends. Once again, an unexpected death completely changed his trajectory and seemed to derail his effort. Until the most unexpected person showed up at the funeral. This unexpected encounter was never a certainty but it redirected the course of his life and the lives of his own adult family. This book began as a journey to understand why a baby had been put up for adoption and by whom. But it turned out to be so much more. It is a story about how to be a survivor of difficult life circumstances, and successfully change one's life in very positive ways. This story took nearly 25 years to write and reflects a life-long journey of discovery, hardship and success in building a better life, filled with love and meaningful relationships. In his journey, Doug was able to uncover all of the mysteries about his adoption and build a loving and wonderful relationship with his birth mother, father and many others in his new extended family.