When a text pinged this happy photo today of me with two of my cherished friends and colleagues after an extraordinary Academy of Adoption and Assisted Reproduction Attorneys Conference, I began my annual Mother’s Day whirl of emotions. With reverence for our shared love of children and our dramatically different paths, I studied the picture of the three of us.

A mother of a girl and two boys born the wondrous ordinary way, a woman with no children who has helped countless people become parents through her work, and a mother of two sons destined to be hers through adoption. What a trifecta!

This Mother’s Day, I celebrate the diverse journeys to motherhood.

Despite the fervent desire to plan, life unfolds unpredictably. The three of us could not have imagined our futures even if we had a crystal ball. When I was struggling with infertility, my heartbroken mother consulted, not a crystal ball, but a psychic, who foretold: “Your daughter will have many children.” The dramatic prophecy came true when my adoptions led me to a lifelong career building families through adoption and assisted reproduction.

This Mother’s Day, I celebrate the diverse journeys to motherhood and send a special wish to those struggling on their way, that they find their path to a dreamed-of child.