A year has gone by since I found my entire biological family thanks to the "Miracle" of DNA! I have to thank my Guru Gurumayi Chidvilasanananda, who's blessing in October 2014 ignited all of the factors necessary so that my DNA would match my niece and nephew and to Julian Riley who connected my DNA to Elvis Presley! Thank you Max for giving my message to your mom and special thanks to my friends and fellow students of  Living in the Truth of the Present Moment Course and my teacher D.R. Butler for encouraging me to search and all of their love and support.

As mentioned in the earlier blog, I met my sister Polly, my biological dad Gary's daughter and her children Molly and Max ,who matched my DNA in Ancestry.com. They live in San Diego, 20 minutes from our house! I also have other siblings that are my dad Gary's children. My sisters Angela and Sara Lee, and brother Travis. I look forward to meeting them sometime next Summer when I travel to Arkansas. Also a younger brother named William that passed away, RIP.

Since then I had the blessing to meet my biological brother, the talented Teddy Randazzo. He is my biological mother Caroline's son. Teddy and I met in San Francisco and had the best reunion! I drove up to meet him along with my new found cousin Darlyn Wallace Van Loock. We had the best time together and were all in awe and shock of my relation to them. I also met my uncle Larry Tackett. He is my dad's brother and his lovely wife Amrit. What was amazing to me was that my uncle is a devotee of Prem Rawat (Maharaji) and his wife a devotee of Ram Das! That in itself was incredible to have that in common.

Later in July 2014 my husband and our kids made a road trip to Washington State where I met all of my other local Van Loock cousins Forrie, Mindy, Jody, Kim and Forrie's wife Susan. I also talked on the phone with my cousin Claudette and cousin Randall. It was amazing to meet them and I felt an instant connection to all them and their children. Since then we have stayed in touch via Facebook and I hope to drive up again this Summer. In addition I met my cousin Mary (Snooky) in LA recently and I loved every second spent with her. She reminded me somehow of my own biological mother Caroline and of her mother, my aunt Mary, whom I  met in Washington and can't wait to visit again. She is the only Vanloock sibling of Caroline's that is still alive.

In July 2014 I reunited with my biological dad Gary. That was the highlight of the year for me! We have so many things in common. He is also a devotee of Prem Rawat (Maharaji). We went together to Pasadena for a program and I got to see him in person and hear him speak. I truly loved him and at that moment felt so connected to my dad. I feel truly blessed to share this connection with him, even if I had to wait over 40 years to do so. We clicked in so many ways, like the same food and loved meditating together! We talked for hours about sadhana and life lessons and how his spiritual path has supported him throughout his very interesting and at times controversial life. Since then I assisted another program by invitation only where I received Maharaji's Blessings (Knowledge).

Meeting my dad was incredible. There is so much wisdom in him. Many have said that he had the life of a fugitive and a criminal. That person of whom they speak, I do not know. The man that I met was kind hearted, funny, charismatic and adventurous. You can see more about his life revealed in an upcoming  film called "Chasing Gary". This film is about his involvement in the Contras Scandal and drug trafficking from 1977-1984. A link to the film's Sizzle reel can be seen at http://vimeo.com/69034638?width=640&height=390 (copy and paste to your search engine).

So as you can all see it has been an amazing year of discovery. Also the realization that my parents in Puerto Rico, the one's that saved my life, raised me with love and kindness as their own child were the perfect parents for me. There is no doubt in my heart and mind that my parents Arleen and Carlos were God's gift to me. I feel very blessed that in spite of my rocky and uncertain beginning, they were the one's who were supposed to raise me as their own child.

I love my mother Arleen so much! She has been my rock and the wind beneath my wings. I love my father Carlos (Cachiro) for his sense of humor, discipline and life lessons. My brother Carlos Alberto, a confident and charming man that has always had my back. This family was solid. They were married until my father passed away in 2001. They loved me unconditionally and taught me to respect adults, honor my parents and to believe in Myself. I would not change my life for anything.
Growing up in Puerto Rico was amazing,  I love living in California. Yet, my heart and soul belong to my island of Puerto Rico. I am 100% Puerto Rican at heart.
 
Thank you all for reading my blog and good luck to all searching for your biological families. With today's technology, regardless if records are sealed, through the advances of DNA technology you can find your ethnicity and background and with a little perseverance find your biological family. Who you are is beyond the physical, beyond the cultural, the Truth lies Within your Self.
Blessings~