Maya Kik: 'Acceptance is the key to happiness for me'

YERSEKE - Following the news about a temporary adoption stop, Maya Kik from Yerseke has decided to release her story. She was born in Indonesia 40 years ago and adopted by a Dutch couple. Growing up in the Netherlands was not always easy for Maya. For a long time she struggled with a void that she thought she could fill with her family from Indonesia, which has remained unknown to this day.

“I wrote my story because I like to share it,” says Kik. “You hear so many negative stories about adoption, but for me it went very well. I wanted to illuminate the other side. Being adopted was certainly not always easy and finding my own happiness, discovering who I am and especially accepting myself was quite a journey. This is the case for many young people, but if you are adopted, this journey will take a little longer. ”

Emptiness

Kik has been looking for her biological family, but has now stopped this search. “I found out that not my family in Indonesia can fill the void I always felt, but that only I can do that myself. The love of God, my children, husband, my dear girlfriends and boyfriends, but especially my own strength that I have developed, have made me strong. I feel happy and happy with myself. I now know that I could feel at home anywhere in the world, because I always have myself with me. ”

Counterfeit

Although Kik is happy with her life that she leads in the Netherlands, she is in favor of the adoption ban. “As an adoptee I can share my experience and hope that it will be listened to. I am for the happiness of every child, I believe that every child is entitled to a nice and warm home. But when it goes the way it went with me, I am an absolute opponent. ”

During Kik's adoption her documents were forged. At that time, the Dutch government did not conduct enough research into the legality of adoptions. “The most important thing for a child is that he or she knows who the biological family is. Not being able to find out who my biological family is has had major consequences for me. It is important for adoptive parents to realize that their child is from another country, has different roots. Adopting a child to the Netherlands means that you also bring his or her culture and background with you and that it does not just disappear. My biological mother, as far as I know, called me 'Maya' and it has left that way. I'm glad about that. Accepting that I may never get answers to my questions makes me happier.

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