Linda: When I was 12, my mother revealed that I had a younger sister who had been given up for adoption. I wondered if she had been born deaf like me. But I grew up not knowing who she was.

Sally: I never knew that I was adopted. My “mother” cruelly beat me and treated me like a servant, so I grew up sad and lonely—an added burden for one born deaf. Then I met Jehovah’s Witnesses and began studying the Bible. When my “mother” found out, she whipped me with a belt and changed the locks on the door, imprisoning me in the house. At age 20, I ran away from home, and the Witnesses took me in. In early 2012, I was baptized.

 Linda: When I was 20, I started studying with Jehovah’s Witnesses. Later, I began attending district conventions in Jakarta, where the program was interpreted for the deaf. There I met many other deaf people, including Sally, a Witness girl who lived in North Sumatra. I felt a certain familiarity with her but thought nothing of it.

Sally: Linda and I became good friends. I thought that we looked alike, but I dismissed the notion as a passing thought.

Linda: In August 2012, the day before I was baptized, I felt a deep longing to find my lost younger sister. “Please let me find my sister,” I begged Jehovah, “because I want to tell her about you.” Soon afterward, my mother unexpectedly received a text message from a person who knew about my lost sister. This set in motion a chain of events that led to my contacting Sally.

Sally: When Linda explained that I was her long-lost sister, I quickly flew to Jakarta to meet her. Exiting airport security, I saw Linda—along with my father, my mother, and my other older sister—waiting to greet me. I was shaking with emotion. We all hugged and kissed—my mother held me the longest. Everyone was crying. When my father and mother tearfully apologized for having given me up for adoption, we cried and hugged some more.

Linda: Because of our different upbringings, we have had to learn to accommodate our different personalities and habits. But we love each other very much.

Sally: Now Linda and I live together and attend the same sign-language congregation in Jakarta.

Linda: Sally and I were separated for more than 20 years. We thank Jehovah that we are reunited at last!