“I saw them put the shirt over his face. I remember his body just being so cold but somehow, he still had that smirk on his face I fell in love with. I was taken to a cop car where I was held waiting for a homicide investigator. Later that morning, a very tall, dark-headed man walked towards me in a long trench coat. Everything was a blur.”
“At least 80 percent of my body is covered in birthmarks. My mother told people they were ‘angel kisses.’ Sometimes I’d think, ‘What if I looked normal?’ But what is normal? I was born to stand out.”
“I grew up thinking my father was a ‘mean man who did mean things.’ There were stories he bit me and threw pots and pans when I’d cry. Five years ago, we found each other on Facebook. During our first few calls, I found out the full extent of my mother’s lies.”
“At some point during contractions, she decided she didn’t want to be pregnant anymore. She hit her stomach a few times. I came out with a broken shoulder, black and blue on one side of my body, and a large hematoma on my head.”
“My husband was about to leave for his weekend trip when he felt my forehead was scorching hot. I felt so cold and feverish. The next few hours were a fog. My treatments were deferred. I was too weak.”
“Which was confusing because I weigh 200 lbs. I am not glowing. I am not treating myself as someone who should have a new wardrobe.”
“I wasn’t ready to go through her room four days after her death. We opened them up and they were Valentine’s Day notes for Jordan and I from Kinsley. I haven’t had much to say. Those words from her were so powerful.”
“I push my needs down to the bottom of the priority list. I beat down the fears with mantras like ‘one day,’ ‘when the kids are older,’ and ‘if it’s meant to happen.’ Raising children on your own is no easy task.”
“This weekend I had a Sunday Funday drive with my friends. My husband is kind enough to not ask questions.”
“You try so hard for something and finally get it, only for a global pandemic to strike. Life certainly seems to have a sense of humor.”
