she has on her website info on us talks about how she is sorry than she is not anna you can access it at her blog she seemed a little upset but then i think understood what we were going through is what i deciphered her message.
Anonymous---your perception couldn't be further from the truth. My heart goes out to the family of Anna. I was deeply saddened by their loss. It is an unfortunate reality of this medium that a reader can not see the writer's body language nor hear the writer's tone of voice and therefore cannot accurately perceive all the writer is trying to convey. If that were possible I do not believe you wouldn't have felt compelled to write what you did. The fact is, however, I needed to let them know that I am not Anna. I also tried to do so in a compassionate way and to clear up any misconceptions that my blog posts or the images from my husbands site created. There is no hostility on either my part or that of my husband. What disconcerted us so much was the amount of time people were obviously putting into researching me and the things they were focusing on as indications that I was Anna. Two come to mind immediately: the fact that Anna had two brothers and I have stated clearly that I have a sister, and the choice of reading books my family enjoys...all were classics that untold numbers of folks have read and as such should not have raised any redflags that I could be Anna. I can't even imagine Anna's mother reading the posts without there being a small glimmer of hope that I was, in fact, her long missing daughter. The heartache she must go through each and every time someone has a "lead" must be immeasurable. We asked that our posts or images from our websites not be posted at WebSleuths or anywhere else simply as a way perhaps to lessen the heartache that Anna's family must go through each time a "lead" doesn't pan out. But the fact remains that I needed to let them know I was not Anna. I simply chose to do so here as opposed to leaving a post on WebSleuth as a small measure of privacy.
Edited by MotherHen on Jul. 16, 2006 at 7:26 AM Permanent Link
Sherlock, I truly don't see what you should apologize for. That Christian lady should understand the meaning of "Seek and ye shall find." As for the weeks and days and minutes, it's a staggering amount of time, isn't it? Thank you for everything, and especially your thoughts, empathy and concern.SherlockJr said:I have decided against posting my apology to Mother Hen on her blogsite. Even more, I decided against even making an apology to Mother Hen. Twelve hours ago, I was at a website to order a floral arrangement of Lavender to be delivered to her door. What is disconcerted with Mother Hen was the amount of time (less than 12 hours) spent researching her. She has no idea of the meaning of time. Anna has been missing 402 months now. Anna has been away from her friends from kindergarten for 1,748 weeks. Anna has been away from her brothers for 12,234 days. And not for one minute of the 17,617,731 she has not been in her mothers thoughts. This alone has changed my thoughts of resting from this case. Mother Hen, nor anyone else for that matter will cease my LookingForAnna.
Actually, I was irritated by all her references to my heartache, etc. It just sounded like words to me. My heart is fine, thank you, and I think she might have been a bit more generous to good people who have put so much time, effort, thought, and heart into finding someone else's little lost girl. "One Anna Waters", indeed. That was cold.Dr. Doogie said:So, did I miss anything?
Great work by everybody here. It obviously is unsettling for someone to sudden find out that their entire life history is the subject of research and conjecture by people that they have never met, and for that, I empathize with "MotherHen". However, when some chooses to post intimate details about themselves on the internet, they take the chance that something like this can happen. What occured here is not stalking or harrassment, and within the realm of courteous behavior when contacting those who voluntarily post personal information. Please do not let this false lead cause anyone to lose hope or become discouraged.
Mikie, you are an inspiration to all of us! I think those references she made in regards to you were actually kinda funny... she doesn't know you like we know you! You are a very strong person who doesn't fall apart at any little reference, etc., to Anna or possible matches.Annasmom said:Actually, I was irritated by all her references to my heartache, etc. It just sounded like words to me. My heart is fine, thank you, and I think she might have been a bit more generous to good people who have put so much time, effort, thought, and heart into finding someone else's little lost girl. "One Anna Waters", indeed. That was cold.
You and Magic Rose made me feel good.HeartofTexas said:Annasmom, you are a woman of unsurpassed dignity and spirit! It's a pleasure to "know" you.
If you believe in such things, I would say she was a very old soul. She was passionate about her family and friends, but could say very wise (and revealing) things about them. She was very generous and loved to give presents, even her favorite possessions. Her favorite song was the Beatles' "Here Comes the Sun". She liked all the animals, but especially liked a neighbor's cat which she had named Melon. One of her favorite books was Papa Snap's Stories. She had a green doll which I had made her which she liked pretty well, but she liked natural things like rocks better. I don't think she ever talked about what she wanted to be when she grew up. One of her favorite possessions was a ratty old leopard-print bathrobe which had belonged to her older brother. I don't think she had a particular favorite color, though she was fond of a red coat I made her. One funny story was when, after school, she stepped on both her kindergarten teacher's feet. The teacher, whom Anna loved and who loved Anna, asked her not to do that because her feet hurt. She didn't understand that this was an invitation to the dance! (Did you ever dance by putting your feet on your parents' feet?)GraceBlue said:Annasmom:
I'd love to hear more about Anna. I know you wrote a manuscript but what was Anna like? What was her favorite color, doll, song, toy, animal, and book? What is the funniest story you have of Anna? What did Anna want to be when she grew up?
Yep, the blog has been completely erased.anthrobones said:I think that lady took her stuff down off her page. I guess she figured only her friends would likely read her journal. Of course, I've always assumed only my friends would see my myspace or facebook pages, but anyone can see myspace.
What fun, hearing this good old song again. Thank you!Shadow205 said:
Annasmom said:If you believe in such things, I would say she was a very old soul. She was passionate about her family and friends, but could say very wise (and revealing) things about them. She was very generous and loved to give presents, even her favorite possessions. Her favorite song was the Beatles' "Here Comes the Sun". She liked all the animals, but especially liked a neighbor's cat which she had named Melon. One of her favorite books was Papa Snap's Stories. She had a green doll which I had made her which she liked pretty well, but she liked natural things like rocks better. I don't think she ever talked about what she wanted to be when she grew up. One of her favorite possessions was a ratty old leopard-print bathrobe which had belonged to her older brother. I don't think she had a particular favorite color, though she was fond of a red coat I made her. One funny story was when, after school, she stepped on both her kindergarten teacher's feet. The teacher, whom Anna loved and who loved Anna, asked her not to do that because her feet hurt. She didn't understand that this was an invitation to the dance! (Did you ever dance by putting your feet on your parents' feet?)