“No one I knew looked like me. I remember searching up different variations of ‘three-fingered hand’ to see if I could find someone else out there. It never worked.”
‘All humans have 10 fingers.’ Everyone turned to stare at me. ‘Well I guess not EVERYONE.’: Teenager raises awareness about limb differences, ‘Difference is beautiful’
‘The car skidded. I tried to run, escape. A whirlwind took us up and when it stopped, my torment started.’: Accident survivor bikes 100 miles, ‘Life can be beautiful, even on wheels’
“‘Mom, what happened to you?’ I didn’t know what to say. I was a vegetable, changed by people whose language I didn’t speak.”
‘My ex remarried and had 3 kids. Believe it or not, we all went to Disney World together. God and Zoloft kept me going.’: Woman shares co-parenting journey, ‘We’re all on board!’
“It had been ‘coming’ in a sense for a couple of years. I was pregnant with our second child when it all went down. We had to put all emotions aside.”
‘If I don’t survive this, I want you to know I lived more in my 36 years than most do in 80.’ It was time to let go.’: Woman shares love story after losing husband to pancreatic cancer
“He complained about stomach pains for 8 months. I remember sitting on our bathroom floor. He was so sick he could barely get up. ‘We feel he should stop treatment.’ On the way home, I asked Kyle what he wanted to do. Second opinion? Alternative medicine? He looked at me and said, ‘I’m tired.’ That was when I knew it was time to stop. It was time to let go.”
‘I felt my elbows tingle and collapsed. Even my organs were paralyzed. I had to push the call button with my neck.’: Stroke survivor creates inclusive dance company
“I collapsed and found myself unable to move my arms and legs. The nurse had to carry me to the bathroom. I was in shock. It felt like a door had been slammed in my face.”
‘I would point women out, ‘Am I skinnier or fatter than her?’ Then I heard my daughter saying similar things. It was sick.’: Mom ‘changes the narrative’ for daughter after wake-up call
“I cursed new and old stretch marks. ‘Only women who are a size 2 can truly be successful.’ My body image dictated how I spoke to myself, even while my daughter was listening.”
‘I desperately tried to hide what was going on from the well-off families. Parents sensed something. Kids were no longer allowed at my house.’: Woman details candid reality of growing up with a drug-addicted parent
“I never got the chance to say goodbye, to tell her that I forgave her. She wasn’t always this way. Reading her journal entries brought me closer to her than I ever thought possible.”
‘I desperately signed over FaceTime, ‘Mom home soon.’ I was stuck in a country with a brand new daughter.’: Couple adopts 2 special needs kids, ‘We are the absolute luckiest’
“I didn’t know when I’d see my husband again. I could hear my son crying, but all I could see was the dreaded ‘poor connection.’ My new daughter was screaming and couldn’t communicate. It was just too hard.”
‘Blessed are the teachers, for they are risking their own lives while juggling balls of fire, underpaid and blindfolded.’: Mom shares viral ‘Corona School Year Beatitudes’
“And blessed are the janitors, for we all know how hard it is to clean up after our kids. This is like that except times a hundred, and if they miss a spot, people might die.”
‘We should move,’ he suggested. Looking back, I now know what he was doing. He was preparing to die.’: Widow shares late husband’s act of kindness before his passing
“We had talked about it over the years, but never made any firm plans. He knew exactly what he was doing.”