“This year started off rough. I had heart surgery and later got thyroid cancer. I was strong for everyone around me. However, I wasn’t strong for myself. When no one was around, I cried, a lot. Do you know what really helped me? My two best friends. They were strong for me. That’s the thing with true friendships. Not the ‘get the most likes on Instagram’ friendships – the real, raw friendships. We care about is each other. It’s that simple.”
“I’m really good at gift buying. But my husband sucks at it. For years it used to make me SO mad he couldn’t get it together to surprise me with a thoughtful gift. I’d get so offended that all the hints I dropped never manifested into an idea. Then I learned of the five love languages, and it finally made sense. Now, I do the socially unacceptable thing. ‘That’s really conceited,’ I’m told. Well, you have to pick your battles in marriage, and this is one I fought for WAY too long.”
“Spouses, ask how she’s feeling. Her entire body just stretched and morphed to share it with another human being. Do you know how absolutely bonkers a woman’s hormones are during pregnancy and after delivery? Becoming a mom for the 1st, 2nd, or even 5th time changes you, forever. Clap for new moms. Your words matter. We need them to be positive.”
“He left me at 10:30 p.m. on a cold Sunday night. You allowed my husband a place to stay, accepting him with open arms. You didn’t say anything to him, knowing he was using drugs. Everyone coddled him. Truth is, you all abandoned me. I was a part of your family for 11 years – and I was written off.”
“We don’t need to fix our baby’s sleep. We need to listen to their requests.”
“There was never a break. Being a single mom was time-consuming as is, add in juggling three small businesses and attempting to figure out how to heal in the midst of it all. Comparison knocked on my door frequently in the beginning.”
“I imagined myself growing old and wrinkled, building a beautiful family with the love of my life. Instead, I’m watching my body waste away right before my eyes with nothing I can do about it.”
“Until my father was diagnosed with lung cancer, I thought I knew about all of his biggest adventures. He grew up in a dirt-floor cabin in Appalachia; he became friends with a burgeoning country music star when he climbed a fire escape into their recording studio. He built my childhood home with his bare hands. I started having him write down his stories in his hospital room. Once he started, he never wanted to stop.”
“When you ask a special needs parent how they’ve been and they roll their eyes, yawn, and say, ‘Eh, it’s been rough, honestly.’ It might be our pride or that we feel guilty. If you have been wondering how you can help, know that it is simple. Show up. Keep showing up.”
“As soon as I gave birth, my mother told the doctor, ‘Get the baby out of here! We’re not keeping it.’ That crushed my soul. I was 16 and never allowed to see my daughter. I overheard the nurse say ‘severe infection.’ I cried even more. ‘She didn’t make it.’ 29 years later, after the birth and death of my daughter, I received an email on Ancestry.com. Deep in my heart, I knew. My mind was racing.”
