At 4:30 a.m. Tuesday, February 20, 2018, Edie learns that John—who happens to be spending time with Justin and his family near Seattle—is equally surprised to find out that he had an older child. While John was happy to talk with his eldest, Justin noted, "His memory isn’t always solid due to his age and life history." Edie soon replies with news of "happy tears" in her house, and asks about contacting their little sister, Rachel, who was an adult when she met Justin in 2007. Ducky and her two eldest (biological) children learn about Edie's discoveries.

Justin emails a 2,228-word email that Jeremy dubs the Manifestbro. Amid the myriad, jaw-dropping revelations is news that "Rachel and John do not communicate directly with each other," by her choice. We learn John spent much of the 1970s and ‘80s in and out of prison; Patrick describes him as "some kind of pot saint." Initially in awe and dumbfounded at how to respond, Edie tells Justin that their exchanges have motivated her to more vigorously explore her maternal Ancestry matches, in the hopes of finding a name that might jog John’s memory.

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Audio editing and production by Michael Thibodeaux and the Rep Cap team