Articles Book III - Pg 300-560 (Birthparents) - triadoption

TIIE RWDWS D1CE.W
ul talent. Periodic repom Tmm the Nrncd up thm pibilitiu One
orphanage indicated that Claudia's was singing in an Atlanta hotel: a
abilities me rcmgnizcd and chat saond was with atraveling band in
she was being given voia losons. Colondo. Ncitha turned out to bc
But the rcpm had cad &er a the Claudia I was rtcking.
yar. when Claudii was adopted. The third, a Claudia Blair. was
Now IZ yars had passed. appearing in a small LQS Angcles
When I alled Squires I was im- nighdub. I flew to Glifornh and
p d by the quin sincerity in his wrote her a note saying that I was
voice. He wid that his wile didn't eking information for a dicnt.
want to intcrtcrc in Claudia's life would come to the nightdub and
Shc just wantd to know whaha ask her a few quenions.
Claudia was all right and if possible The following night. I mchd
to mcct hcr again. 'It may be a- the club in time for the tint show.
pensive," Squira said "But I want ?he stage cumins paned to meal
you to do anything you ha= to do Chudia Blair. She was a sltnder
to find Claudiz h e watched my girl, vuy pretty, with a plasant
wife suffa long enough. 1 love ha voia and good NF procnoc The
and want to help ha." audience liked ha, and so did I.
It's hard to say no to a man like Whcn she had finished ha songs,
that. But 1 warned him that it is vcry I went to ha dressing room. She
difficult for a natural parent to trace was sitting in a chair. knitting, and
a legally adopted child.No rcputablc did not lmk up as I induced myadoption
agency will divulge the =IF. "It's nice to meet you, Mr.
names of the adopting parents or Goldhder:' she wid. "Our managa
anything el.r about the childi cir- read me your notr I couldn't read it
cumstan- Even the coun records mywlf. You we I'm blind."
qarding the adoption arc scaled. I was stunned. "lin sorry," I stam-
Ncvcrthclas. I went to Utiu and mad. "I didn't know, Miss Blair."
*iritcd the orphan.&. The authori- "Not many people do. ?he sugc
ties thcrc. while refusing-quite curuiru arc always drawn before
rightly-to answer questions. inad- sommne luds me off."
rmcntly gavc me a clue. "Claudia's :'Can anything be done?"
nadr arc wcll taken care of." I was "No." she wid. "I11 always be
told. "In ha. we understand she blind. Now, what do you want?"
has a camr of ha own."
By this time I had grave doubts
This reference to a urn left me that I had round the right girl. 1 told
wondaing if the girl might not bc her abut my assignment. As she
singing professionally. .% search of listcncd her hcc hard and
pcrformcrs-union files for a female cold. "Yq" she said. "I was that
vocalist. first name Claudia. age child. Whcn 1 was eight yurs old,
about 21. blond hair. blue qcs. my mother gavc me away-kauw
"I'LL C0.U.E BA 'CK FOR YOU"
sine & v d dut I was going
blind"
Chudia's bittancu was obviously
prof~lnd Sk knew nothing of her
motha's whaclbouy and made it
dar that she didn't want to. She
spoke with p t &mion of ha
doptim ~M~IS, the Blairs, with
whom she lived in a n d y suburb.
She flatly jened my suggestion
that she mat wirh ha mother.
Whcn I told John Squires of Claudia>
blindness and bincrnen, hew
silent for a moment. Then he said,
"I'm terribly iony. But I'd like you
to make evcry doon to pernude
CLudia to change hcr mind"
That may bc impossible," I said.
"Is it tmt that your wifi knew
CLudia was lcsing her sight when
sh put hcr in tbc orphanagr?"
Job Squires haitared. Finally,
he Pi4 "The truth an be mysided.
Plusc don't give up."
I told hin~ that I -would lmk up
Uaudiis adoptive parents and try
toenh thdr support. That evening.
whm I was sum Claudia had gone
to work, I went to the Blain' homc.
?hey mre clearly warmhuncd
pplc But when I asked for their
help, MIX Blair h e quite agitatsd
and said, "I don't YX why
Claudia should have anything to do
with her mother."
Blair added earnestly. "We want
you to know hat we have never
fried to Nrn Claudiu against ha real
motha. If she seems bitter, iis h-
wuw of what she rcmcrnkrs when
she wu lei? at the orphanage.*
"YOU should have ucn her!" Mrs.
Blair burst out. "We went to that
orpbanagc to adopt a mull b&y.
But there was Claudia, nine yean
old No fitha, no motha. And she
was losing ha yaight We had to
take ha. IVe've neva rrgmtcd it"
W s me," said Blair. "We
couldn't love ha more if she wm
our own daughter."
mnsm I ~ ~ y ~ e d r l "YOU ~ ,
should know how her own mother
TI."
We talked for more dun an hour.
I pointed out that the binancu
Claudia Tdt might b m c corrosive
in h4 lifc \Vouldn't it be bcna to
cry rn eliminate it? I used dl the
powas of persuasion I could sunmon.
Firully, they glurccd at each
other, and MmBLir nodded slowly.
"Wcll talk to Chudia &ut it," she
said. "xlephone ha here tomorrow
&moon. She will have to give you
the final answer."
When I phoned CIaudiu oploded
almost at oncc"1 was given away
-abandoncdl" d~ cried 'Whcn I
mast needed my mother, she deserted
me, beaux she didn't want
the burden of a blind child. Do you
apcct me to forgive that?"
"You might at lcart hear her side
of it"
There was a long silencc Finally,
she said, 'Vay wrlL To plav my
adowvc parcnu, whom I dearly
lave, 1'11 m e with ha. Just one.
But nothing will ever change the
way that I fed abut hcr.Nothiig!"
I telephoned John Squira. He
said that he and his wife would fly
to Lor Angcles rtwt night 'I think