Adoptee spotlight: Sophie

Guilin, Guangxi China --> Illinois, United States

Hi, I’m Sophie, I am from Guilin, Guangxi China and I was adopted in 2006, when I was two years old. This was sometime after the Chinese special needs adoption program started. As part of a military family, I moved a lot growing up and have lived on the east coast and in the midwest in the United States, and I was originally in Illinois. My Chinese name (now legally my middle name) is 杨景萧 Yáng Jǐng Xiāo — Yáng being my given surname, Jǐng meaning scenery or view, and Xiāo referring to the Chinese bamboo flute. My orphanage gave me this name “in hopes that my future would be as beautiful as the music played on the xiao flute.” Even after I was adopted, I still insisted on being called my nickname, XiāoXiāo. 

I do not know much about my life before my adoption but I have the faintest memories of my time in China before moving to the US. I am very thankful for my mom who has always been very open about my adoption and has told me all she knows. I have many siblings, most of which are also adopted from China! I honestly couldn’t imagine not having them in my life because we are all super close and I love having siblings who share a similar story to me. One of my sisters is actually from the same orphanage as me, but if we are blood-related, we do not know. My mom has always made an effort to celebrate Chinese holidays to help us learn more about our culture, like the Lunar New Year and Mid-Autumn Festival.

"My mom has always made an effort to celebrate Chinese holidays to help us learn more about our culture, like the Lunar New Year and Mid-Autumn Festival."

I have many hobbies, though lots of them come and go at times. Some of my favorites at the moment are crocheting, drawing, and reading! I also love dogs and have two French Bulldogs who are the sweetest pups ever. 

One of the big things I have struggled with as an adoptee is not knowing any family or genetic history whatsoever. I have gone to many doctors trying to figure out what I may have going on and have left without any answers or diagnoses. I can’t help but wonder if what I have struggled with is something genetic or completely unrelated. 

Especially in the past year or so, I have become confident in my identity as an Asian adoptee. One way I have grown to love my culture is by learning how to cook Asian cuisines. Asian food has always been my favorite and I love knowing how and being able to make my favorite dishes at any time. I went back to China once when I was 10 years old, but I was not able to visit my province during that time. One day I hope to see my hometown/province and learn more about where I came from!