adopted teen finds family -- and answers -- in china

The Los Angeles Times has a story on 17-year-old Christian Norris of Easton, Maryland, who was adopted by an American family eight years ago, but recently returned to China for the first time to meet his birth parents: Adopted teen finds answers, mystery in China.

The article says that upon meeting his parents, Christian was stoic and silent, perhaps out of shock, or just not knowing what to say. The reunion took place over the weekend in a crowded Beijing hotel room, with well-wishers and media on hand to witness the virtually unprecedented event.

Since the early 1990s, an estimated 75,000 Chinese-born children have been adopted abroad, and although they increasingly visit China on heritage tours, Christian is one of only a few who have managed to chase down their personal history.

His story is also unusual because he's male, whereas most adoptees are girls abandoned because of the Chinese preference for boys and the government's "one child" policy. And unlike most adoptees, who are given up as babies, he lived with his family until he was nearly 7.

It's a just a crazy story about how Christian was separated from his family China (they lost him during a bus excursion), his own frustrations over his spotty childhood memories, and the efforts by a his adoptive mother to help him pursue his origins.