Mom and Dad,
As we prepare to bring home my brother and your son from China in just a few short weeks, I want to reflect on what you both mean to me. When we were still in the process of applying for adoption, you needed me to write a reference letter for you. It seemed like such a strange formality to write that “these two individuals are fit to be the legal guardians of Fang Tou.” I felt like I could have written a whole book filled with stories from my childhood, and each anecdote would have been more than enough “evidence” of your competence and success in parenting. I had no doubt that not only would you be able to “rescue” him and give him the necessities for survival, but that you would be welcoming him into a home where he would truly belong to a family.