My partner and I are visiting my home country next week and I need to retrieve important items from my estranged father's house; university documents, my birth certificate and, most importantly, personal diaries.
Last summer, after years of difficult family dynamics, my father dropped us last minute during a trip where we were trying to visit a dying grandparent. I responded by saying future plans would need to be "mutually agreed". Shortly after, he disappeared from the messaging app we used and I haven't heard from him since. I recently ran into him on the street when I had to return to the capital to sort out some documents, but he didn't even acknowledge seeing me.
I texted him last week for the first time requesting access to collect my belongings on a specific date. No response. I reached out to another family member for help, but that was also unhelpful.
If it makes any difference, I am still legally registered at their address but the issue is that I no longer have a key myself. I also have a lawyer I will be consulting who has advised me to document everything due to past threats from my parents.
But practically speaking, has anyone navigated retrieving belongings from an estranged family member's home when they were being unresponsive? What worked for you? I need some advice because while I have dealt with difficult communication from family before, I have never dealt with this extent of silencing and icing out as being displayed by my father right now.