On a stormy night 22 years ago, Ben Farinazzo's job as a peacekeeper in Timor-Leste took an unexpected twist.
After being told some locals were looking for him, Mr Farinazzo found three people standing by the front gate of their camp.
He was greeted by a man and two women, one of whom was heavily pregnant.
"Her name was Umbelina and her husband and mother had accompanied her from the hills in the intense rain, as she was about to have her baby," he wrote on social media this week.
"They had been hiding for more than a month, surviving on boiled tree roots."
Mr Farinazzo was part of the Australian peacekeeping mission to Timor-Leste, then known as East Timor, after violence broke out following a nationwide vote in favour of independence from Indonesia.
What happened next that night was something that even Mr Farinazzo admits no army training could have prepared him for.
"Eventually a healthy baby boy arrived and the storm stopped," he said.
"It was a strong reminder that despite the terrible conditions, that life could and must go on.
"A beautiful little baby boy, born on a cold, concrete floor of a burnt-out classroom in the middle of a raging storm — a symbol of hope, new life and new beginnings".
The family was so grateful for his help, they asked Mr Farinazzo to name him but he politely declined.
Before he came back to Australia, Mr Farinazzo visited the family "to make sure they were alright", giving them a care package as well.
Even after his return from Timor-Leste, the retired captain found himself wondering what had happened to "Baby Benjamin" and his family.
"I often think about him and his family. I wonder if he is still alive and what his life is like," he told the Australian War Memorial in 2019.
Little did he know the power of social media would mean he would one day see Baby Benjamin again.
Post goes viral in Timor-Leste
Mr Farinazzo posts every year on September 20 to mark the anniversary of International Force East Timor (INTERFET) — the day Australian peacekeepers landed in Dili.
He told the ABC usually his posts don't gather that much traction, but something different happened this year.
He said he saw it was starting to be shared widely among accounts in Timor-Leste.
Then, on Thursday night, Mr Farinazzo received a message that shocked him.
"I was with my wife saying, 'No, no, no, no'," he told the ABC.
"I couldn't believe it."
Baby Benjamin had reached out.
"He is well and so are his parents. He is studying engineering at the national university in Timor-Leste in Dili."
Mr Farinazzo said he ended up video calling with Baby Benjamin, who told him his mother and father send their regards and hadn't forgotten him either.
"He’s never seen photos of the day he was born, so I showed him the ones I have," he said.
As for an in-person meet-up, Mr Farinazzo said he was looking forward to the day, COVID-9 border restrictions permitting, they could meet face to face.
