My mom died 5 years ago. At the time, we were just reconciling after a long period of estrangement. In that time, I hit bottom and simply did not give a damn.

The problem I have now is that my mother had deliberately isolated us from both my father's family and her own family while I was growing up. I'm living in the area my dad is from, but I don't know much about her family.

In some ways, coming out from hitting bottom feels like I'm waking up emotionally, and I'm beginning to care a lot. I really feel that I gave Mom's family a raw deal by not trying to contact them earlier. They have a right to know.

I've taken a good first step as I've contacted some promising leads in the area I knew my uncle and aunt lived (Mom had a pretty uncommon maiden name.) The thing is, I'm nervous as hell and I'm not sure what to do next. Any suggestions? Thanks.