I have brought something through time for you. No one will find it until you need it and are big enough to understand the importance of its contents. I have tucked it away secretly so only you will be able to look through all of the photos on one certain day in my past, which will be your future. What is it you ask? It is a cell phone. It will show you your mother’s face, the one you know you have seen and long for and you will find out that she had two more children, two boys who are your brothers. You will see that you will be in touch with your cousins – the children of your mother’s sister and brother. You will use this phone to text with them, they will even send you video of the dead Queen of England rolling through Aberdeen in her coffin. All of their pictures, pictures of people that look like you, are inside this little gift. You will see pictures of the land of your mother, and your place in time.

 It has photos of Sam, your dad. There are two more sisters and they have kids who, one day, you will meet and love. Unfortunately, these pictures will not change many life lessons, and you will have to search for a very long time, but you will find all these people one day.

Inside this magical phone are also pictures of people who you loved, and lost. They will not like that you find out about your adoption and they will be angry that you could love your own mother and father, so you will lose contact with them. Cherish them while you are able, be yourself and love them up while you are there with them, the years will seem long but they will run out.

My hope in this highly unusual and very secretive transport of goods from the future is that you (we) might be able to navigate better through the crazy ups and downs and secrets and lies and worst of all, the betrayal. There will be heartbreak. You will have to grow your heart. You might then understand that it is all part of your road and that you can relax a bit more and unwind. All will be revealed. Here is the proof, just look at all these pictures. The pictures of us – me and you, will allow you to see important milestones along the way. This will be helpful for you to see so that you don’t give up searching and living the life you have created, and struggled to achieve. I am sorry that you had to do it all alone. The grief could have killed many a soul, but you will live.

I want you to know that you will have an interesting life. Constantly in search of some unknown treasure or piece of knowledge, you look high and low for yourself, under situations and around corners. Never give up. No matter what they say or tell you. None of it is true, except your mother telling you that they will send you back naked, like the day you arrived. One day you will understand this sentence.

I haven’t brought back in time the letters from our mother, even though I have them now. One such letter recounts the day she left us at the hospital. If I could bring it back in time to her – which is not allowed – maybe she would have kept us. I have to keep those letters here in the future because of the ripple effect it would have on all the people and places you have met and loved and hated – we are richer for the experiences, even if we would have very much preferred to stay with our own mother. Maybe she would have loved us if she had the chance. However, at the end of the day, you hate haggis (and will always hate haggis) so, it’s better to stay with these people for now, frankly they eat better and they will eventually live by the sea – you love the sea. It is your soul’s language and will provide you with the insights and comfort you seek.

The cell phone must be plugged in for it to work, so here is the charger. After you look at all the photos put it back in our secret hiding place, so I can come back for it. Like your adoption, this is a secret mission and we don’t get caught knowing who we are too early, but at least you will know why our days are so confusing. Good luck to you little girl. Be brave and strong. I love you.