Nov 24, 2009 11:26 pm US/Eastern
Mother Helps Son Find Birth Parents In China
EASTON, Md. (WJZ) ―
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Christian came to America when he was 10, when Julia Norris adopted him from a Chinese orphanage.
CBS
For years, an Eastern Shore teenager believed he'd been abandoned by his birth parents. Turns out, they had been searching tirelessly for their son for more than a decade.
Jessica Kartalija has the exclusive story from Easton.
This dramatic reunion of an American teenager with his birth parents is nothing short of a miracle, and it was pulled off by his adoptive mother.
Christian came to America when he was 10, when Julia Norris adopted him from a Chinese orphanage.
"He was found in February of '99 under an overpass in the city of Luoyang. Police picked him up and took him to the orphanage," Julia said.
Haunted by vague childhood memories of his family, Christian wanted answers.
"They left me and they abandoned me. That's what I thought the whole time," he said.
When he turned 14, he started to seriously talk about finding his birth parents.
From her home on Maryland's Eastern Shore, Julia searched extensively for Christian's family, contacting an organization that searches for missing children in China.
"I got an e-mail back. They found them," Julia said.
The e-mail contained a bombshell for Christian. His father says they got separated en route from their small town to a local village. He searched frantically, but never saw his little boy again.
"Ugh, my heart just broke. As a mom, you immediately ache for that mom, and what they went through. And for the dad and the guilt he had felt for the last 11 years," said Julia.
In August, Julia and Christian boarded a flight to China.
A Chinese television station flew Christian's family to Beijing for the dramatic reunion.
"The first person to greet us was the birth father. He just began crying, and saying something in Chinese, and went down on his knees," Julia said.
"I didn't see them as my parents. They were strangers to me," said Christian.
"I just couldn't imagine being in their shoes, having your son missing for 11 years and then finding out he's alive," said Julia.
The two families spent the next several days in China putting the pieces of Christian's past, back together.
Christian had to get over the shock of meeting his birth parents.
"Survivor's guilt that I have been blessed and given a really good family," said Christian.
Adopted children often search for their birth parents when they're teenagers.
"Do I look like them? Do I act like them? Do they think of me or am I lost and forgotten? All of these questions get answered when they seek out their biological parents," said Dr. Jack Vaeth.
Since Christian and Julia returned to the U.S., their family bond has grown stronger.
"I might not have her physical features, but I have her character and her heart," said Christian.
Julia and Christian keep in touch with his Chinese family via e-mail. Christian hopes to travel to China again and someday work with adopted children overseas.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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