Mama,

I am saying "Thank You" to you, to my father, to my little sister, to my Grandmas and Grandpa. I will remember you and never forget you.
However, sometimes in the middle of the night the past flashes back with an unspeakable sadness and phantom pain. So my views of your actions might be harsh, my memories - grave, but that is how I reflected on everything that was going on with all of us at the time.
I am grateful to all of you for your patience, for honestly carrying out your parental duties. You had a choice of abandoning me from the start, and giving me over to an institution. In that case, I doubt I would have had an opportunity to see the world, to know what friendship is all about, to meet so many wonderful people, to consider myself a tiny part of civilization, and to write these words.

My illness, incurable and merciless, pulled us apart. You fought my disease, and at the same time you had to deal with your own despair, your personal problems, and the cruelty of the Soviet State. You fought while you could go on. You are humans and your abilities are limited. Having no way of knowing what was going on in your souls, how your own personal worlds were breaking apart, I am asking you to forgive me in advance if, unknowingly, I appear stern and unjust in my evaluation of events. I have not yet come to closure in understanding everything that happened to me, but I am absolutely certain of one thing - neither you Mama nor the rest of the family have anything to be ashamed of.

God bless you.
Your son Anton.