I didn’t want anything to change at all, and when it did I didn’t know how to deal with the anger at first. At the beginning of junior year, things were finally looking up. I was getting along really well with both my parents, and I was becoming really close with my little brothers. Right at the end of my junior year of high school, that’s when everything took a dive.

I never knew about my half brother until he reached out to me. For my entire life, my father had kept it a secret from me that I had another sibling. My mother was so upset about him fathering another child that it was decided no one outside of them would ever know. I got a message on Instagram from a seemingly random kid from Wauconda. At first I didn’t think anything of it, until I actually read it and saw this kid was claiming to be my brother. He sent his phone number, and as we starting talking I realized this kid was really my brother. I went and found my dad, and he told me everything. At first, it didn’t seem real at all. Once my dad told me it was true, it became undeniable. I was so angry that all of the sudden I had to accept this person into my family out of nowhere. When we talked over the phone, I told Michael I didn’t know if I wanted to meet him. He was angry I felt that way, and his being angry made me even more upset. I was sitting in my room when my dad came in and told me that I had to meet him. “Jack, it’s the right thing to do. You have to accept him as being your brother, there’s nothing you can do to change it.” He was right. I drove out to Wauconda to meet my long lost brother the next day. I’d never been so nervous for anything in my life. When I walked up to the house, he was sitting on the porch waiting. He looked so much like me it was incredible. All of the sudden I wasn’t nervous at all anymore; this wasn’t some random guy from Wauconda, this was really my brother. That day, we talked a lot and realized we had almost everything in common. Soon, he became my best friend.

I know now that I was wrong to be angry about having a long lost brother. While it took time for me to stop being mad at my dad, as soon as I met Michael I knew that I made the right choice by going to meet him. I judged him so harshly without having ever known him, which was immature and ridiculous. I was just angry about the circumstance, and looking back I wish I had felt differently. Thankfully, I chose to accept him as my brother instead of writing him off and refusing to talk to him. Ever since having that revelation that I shouldn’t be so critical, my life has gotten better. I stopped judging people so harshly, and i’ve tried to keep as open a mind as possible. I’ve since forgiven my dad, and i’ve never regretted it. Looking back, I wouldn’t change anything. The only thing I regret is that I never found out about Michael sooner.

Looking back on my Junior year, I can say without doubt that it was one of the best times of my life. Sometimes you need to hit lows before you can truly appreciate the highs. When I found out about my half brother, Michael, that was one of the lowest lows i’ve ever had. I consider myself extremely lucky that it turned around so quickly. Becoming friends with Michael and accepting him into my family was one of the best decisions I ever made.