Sunlight on Shards: Adoption From the Inside Out

In 1969, Naomi Morrisey, the sixth of eleven children raised in a traditional Australian Catholic family, became pregnant at age 19. In order to hide their shame, her parents uprooted their family and moved to Canada for six months, where Naomi was placed in a home for unmarried mothers. After being forced to relinquish her baby for adoption, the family returned to Australia as if this event never occurred. She and her family didn't talk about this for decades.



SUNLIGHT ON SHARDS is Naomi's account of her life-long struggle to emerge from this silence, guilt, and grief about the loss of her child. The story reveals the trauma experienced by adoptees plagued by endless questions about their identities and why their mothers gave them away. It is also a story of love and the power of friendship. Naomi's conversations with a few friends, and her husband Bob, gave her the strength to face the challenges of emerging memories and of the reunion with her daughter. Naomi's story echoes that of thousands of young women, bullied into submission to adoption by parents, religious institutions, and governmental policies and practices.