“It was back to square one. I had to learn to sit up, roll over in bed, get dressed. The one single aggravating moment I remember well was trying to put on my socks, which felt like an impossible feat. It literally took over an hour. It was never easy.”
“After 10 hours of labor, they placed her in my arms. As soon as the nurses left the room I turned to my husband and said, ‘What do we do?’ I was terrified. Everyone told me my motherly instincts would kick in. 3 years in, they still haven’t.”
“Here I was, recently divorced from a 19-year relationship, a single mom to 3 kids. My plan was to be alone. I was not ready for dating. Well, life doesn’t always go according to plan.”
“You love them through the nightmares and trauma. You hold them when their parents don’t show up. You love them so dearly, because holding back would be so much less than they deserve. When I return the child I’ve nurtured as my own, I must trust their parents will be the best they can be. If not, I will always be there waiting, with open arms and an open heart.”
“I changed my name and perfected my accent. No one knew about my past. I exercised, dieted, tanned, toned, concealed, and accentuated—all for attention. Then I noticed muscle weakness. At that moment, I knew.”
“Doctors thought she was blind, but I knew she was autistic. I needed to show her autism could be a gift. Running was the answer to how I was feeling. I downloaded an app, gathered equipment, and our adventure began.”
“Who’d believe a little girl like me with such an evil disease would be SO GOOD. My mom called my dad and said, ‘Your daughter is winning, and not just by a little!’”
“For the next 5 minutes, he scolded me. A full role-reversal. The child scolding the parent for technology time.”
“I spent most of my life at war with my body. I heard one of the girls utter the word, ‘Pig.’ Me. They thought I looked like a pig. I looked in the mirror and realized I didn’t look like them. I was different.”
“I was constantly told, ‘You’re so dedicated.’ ‘I wish I had your willpower.’ I wore these compliments with pride thinking, ‘If only I could have more self-control, all of my problems will be fixed.'”
