# The Second Goodbye: A Birth Mother's Journey of Love, Loss, and Letting Go

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/epic-stories-6367889/the-second-goodbye-a-birth-mother-s-journey-of-love-loss-and-letting-go
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/epic-stories-6367889/the-second-goodbye-a-birth-mother-s-journey-of-love-loss-and-letting-go.md
Podcast: [Epic Stories](https://stenobird.com/podcast/epic-stories-6367889)
Published: 2026-05-14T08:15:00+00:00
Episode link: https://epic-stories.captivate.fm/episode/the-second-goodbye-a-birth-mothers-journey-of-love-loss-and-letting-go
Audio file: https://episodes.captivate.fm/episode/3acc39b9-d835-46a1-8ebf-e26e13b40f9a.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/epic-stories-6367889/episodes/the-second-goodbye-a-birth-mother-s-journey-of-love-loss-and-letting-go
Duration seconds: 514

## Resource

Have you ever lived a story that doesn’t have an ending? Hi, I’m Jean Tillery, and in this episode of Epic Stories, I invite you to sit with me in the discomfort, hope, and beauty of an unfinished story—my story. This week, as Mother’s Day just passed, I share what it means to carry an experience that offers no perfect closure, a story that has shaped me in ways I’m still discovering. Last year, I told the story of being adopted and becoming a birth mom. But I’m not the same person I was then, and my story keeps shifting. Today, I open up about what has changed since I first shared that part of my heart—and about how I’m still learning to live in the tension of love, longing, and letting go. What’s Inside This Episode I begin by reflecting on my journey, starting from my adoption as a baby and the loving home I was raised in. Decades later, I found myself looking at things from the other side, navigating the emotional and complex terrain of being a birth mom who chose adoption for my own son. I talk about the ache that comes from unanswered questions and what it was like the day my son found me after 37 years of silence. For four incredible days, I got to reconnect—even just through texts—and fill in the blanks in each other’s lives. And then, just as suddenly, he was gone again. I haven’t heard from him since August 11, 2021, and that silence is a wound I’m learning to live with. A few weeks ago, an unexpected moment at the movies cracked open these old feelings in a raw new way. I realized I needed to let go of the hope of reunion, not because I stopped caring, but because hope itself was becoming too painful to carry. Letting go was as hard as it was the first time—and even heavier, because now I know him. Throughout this episode, I’m honest about my grief, my hope,…

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## Transcript

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