Prologue
When I was little, I always thought I would see my parents again.
Every night before bed, Grandpa would tell me stories about their adventures. Hearing those stories made me feel closer to them.
It wasn't until I was nine years old that I asked Grandpa for the real story. I wanted to know the truth. What were my parents really like? Why did they leave? And where were they now?
Well, I got answers to some of my questions. Unfortunately, Grandpa couldn't answer them all...
So I did research. I looked up everything I could find about the places they went. But the more I learned, the more I wanted to see them. It was hard not to think about them, especially when I saw other kids with their parents.
Every day, I hoped for a sign…any sign that they were coming home...but none came.
It was pretty clear the chances of seeing them again were slim. I mean, what were the odds of them surviving the jungle and just showing up at our door after all these years?
One day, I couldn't take it anymore...
I was sick of waiting for them to come back. I couldn't stand another night dreaming of us together to wake up and realize the truth…
So I packed up their things and put them in the attic. Grandpa tried to talk me out of it. He told me I shouldn't get rid of my memories, but I couldn't go another day like this…
It was too painful...
I didn't want to think about them anymore…
I had to accept that I would never see them again…