“‘There’s been an accident.’ Silence. My doorbell rang. 6 uniformed agents were at my front door. ‘Leave your daughter here, they will watch her, you need to come with me.’ I was hesitant, but sensed the urgency in their voices. No one knows how long he had been laying there. I froze. I kept thinking it was a joke. Scott was a huge prankster. I just kept hoping his eyes would open.”

‘Scott, a 30-year-old picture of health, was on the Treadmill before work. The cleaning lady found him.’: Woman loses Border Patrol Agent husband to sudden heart attack, finds new partner who ‘allows me to love 2 men at the same time’

I Lost My Hearing To An Infection, But Deafness Will Not Define Me
“People can be inconsiderate and make comments, but it is only because they don’t understand or they will choose not to. However, the choice is yours whether or not to take that as your identity.”

‘I was not a virgin. BUT I was in my own home. I took my rape and buried it. For 21 years.’: Teenager raped at her own party in high school says she was a ‘broken spirit,’ but learned to ‘survive, be strong’
“When I was 18, I threw a party at my house. I convinced my parents I was grown enough to stay home alone. Enter the sweaty keg in the living room that left a ring on the floor permanently. And the collection of teddy bears my mom kept in the living room drowned in the pool. It was devastating. That night I drank too much and let people I thought were friends, destroy parts of my childhood.”

‘I’ve never imagined myself with a white woman.’ I wasn’t offended, I was honored. He feels safe with me.’: Interracial couple form beautiful blended family
“An older black woman at my church said to me, ‘You two are healers…I can sense it. It is healing you both and it is healing the world.’ Kevin wasn’t the first black man I’d dated, but I was starting to hope he’d be the last.”

‘My son came home with a bite mark on his arm. Here’s what I did about it: Nothing.’: Mom is sick of placing blame, says ‘we’re on the same team, he’s fine’
“I signed an incident report which stated he didn’t even cry at the time. Do I need to be upset? Nah. I would’ve given anything to have just one mom look up at me and say, ‘I’ve been there too. It’s okay.’”

‘He said, ‘Hey, I have herpes. Did you give it to me?’ Just like that. I played my part of ‘perfect girlfriend.’: Woman urges others to ‘listen to that voice inside’ after finally leaving abusive relationship
“The day of the funeral came. I smiled when people asked, ‘When are you guys going to get married?’ I cringed at the thought. I checked his phone. Him: ‘My mom left me a lot of money.’ Her: ‘So?’ Him: ‘Now we can be together.’ Her: ‘What about HER (me), you’re lying.’ Him: ‘Let’s run away together.’ I woke him up and asked him, ‘What the hell is this?'”

You Never Know The Last Time You’ll See Your Loved Ones—Make The Most Of It
“Give thanks for the time you have with the ones you love most.”

‘It snapped me awake. What I thought was snoring, was actually the ‘death rattle.’: Woman remarries after high school sweetheart’s sudden death, creates big, blended family with new husband, ‘I love my husband’s ex-wife’
“I found myself breaking my set of rules with him right away. I never got in a car with someone. I went for a drive with him on the first date, to the middle of nowhere, to ‘look for owls.’ I told him to invite Meredith (his ex) over for Christmas morning. He was confused. I love my husband’s ex-wife.”

‘Well the doctor said I am crazier than him!’ Grandma exclaimed with a look I couldn’t quite place.’: Granddaughter learns important lesson in caring for elders, ‘I didn’t know it then. Everything ends.’
“4 months after I had the baby, Grandma passed away. My kids learned to honor the elderly. They learned to put someone else’s needs above their own. They soaked in the last possible days with people that spent a lifetime pouring into all of us. For that, I have no regrets.”

Why I’m Thankful For My Time As A Homeless Addict
“I’m thankful I was sleeping under that bridge then just as much as I’m thankful for having a big beautiful house to sleep in now.”

‘Mommy, why do you put on that makeup?’ Every day, I lie to my daughter.’: Mom avoids telling young daughter ‘real reasons’ for insecurities, ‘I won’t bring her down with my ugly truth’
“‘I put on makeup because I like to play with colors. You know, like you play with your art?’ For a second I wonder if that frown had given me away. But then, she’s jabbering on about the butterfly we finger painted yesterday. Thank God, I think. It worked.”

‘To the men giving their wives all they’ve got, it’s not enough.’: Wife urges ‘there’s not enough time’ for intimacy after daily chaos, ‘I get it, you’re tired’
“Truthfully, all you’ve got left to give at the end of a long workday is not a lot. I get it — you’re tired. Here is your wife, wanting all you’ve got left. And it’s just not enough.”

‘Tragically, she died by poisoning.’ Needless to say, I was aghast, horrified. ‘Holy cow, I’m so sorry.’: Woman recalls sarcastic husband’s morbid first date joke, ‘He was laughing so hard he was gasping for breath’
“We begin making more small talk. ‘You mentioned you’ve been married twice. What happened with your second wife?’ Manny sat straight up in his chair and looked me in the eye. ‘Well, sadly, she died as well…’ By now I’m thinking, ‘Oh my gosh, I could end up in the back of his trunk.’ Our server hands us our food. We just sat there across from each other in silence.”

A Divorced Single Mom Of Two, I Was Adopted At Age 32
“It’s been 5 years since I was legally adopted by my parents, but our heart adoption was many, many years before this.”

‘You’re sitting on something.’ I about died. I got engaged in the Costco parking lot.’: Woman recalls hilarious engagement story after first date at Costco
“We walked by the jewelry section. I spotted the prettiest emerald ring. Manny said, ‘nice stuff’. I said, ‘yes, the emerald is gorgeous.’ He said, ‘Thanks, we are just looking.’ I made a bee line over to the jewelry case to find the ring later. It wasn’t there. I couldn’t believe it. ‘I’m sorry, right as you left, another couple came by and bought it.’ I get in the car, not speaking to him.”

‘I remember blood all over the counter, a calm look on my mom’s face. At 13, she sent me to get bandages for her ‘accidental’ cut.’: Woman shares healing journey after mother’s suicide
“I’ve been to my mom’s grave twice. In 20 years. You won’t find a single photo of her in my home. I know this wasn’t her fault. It doesn’t change the effects her illnesses have had on me. None of it changes that her 60th birthday is not a birthday at all, because she is dead. I want to honor her, I really do. But I can’t face the woman who tried to break me.”

‘You are on vacation again?’ I feel like a fake. They don’t see I want to be anywhere but here’: Woman receives ‘reminder’ of faith in moment of struggle, ‘I was broken in shambles’
“Social media sees me on a Caribbean island right now, drinking fruity drinks, floating in the ocean. While everyone was still waking up, I walked the beach. I was angry. I need more answers than that! Moments later, I found a beat-up dime floating in the ocean. I cried painful tears. ‘This is what I am doing to you.'”

‘How can you allow a dead baby to stay inside you?’ ‘Because it’s my baby.’ I’m keeping her safe.’: Mom suffers multiple miscarriages, loss of twin, says ‘to me, every child matters’
“We rushed to the doctor. I was sadly met with little concern. ‘There is nothing we can do. Let nature take its course, what will be, will be!’ I chose the natural route. I wanted to keep her with me for as long as possible. A scan showed the baby had grown further, but her heart remained still. ‘No Zoe, sadly your baby hasn’t miraculously come back to life. Yes, we know you had hoped it would happen.’”

After 13 Years Of Infertility, I Unexpectedly Gave Birth To A Child On The Toilet
“My partner and I had been together 13 years. No matter how badly I wanted it, I couldn’t get pregnant. I kept thinking when the time is right, my body would let me know.”

After 21 Years, Sisters Reunite With First Responders Who Saved Them From Deadly House Fire
“We finally got to meet our heroes from that night.”

‘I don’t want to be sick. I hope I just go to sleep and wake up in heaven.’: Woman thanks husband’s family for sharing ‘spunky’ Nana with her after losing father to suicide
“I started dating Matt, my future husband, and quickly learned he lived with his grandmother. I didn’t want Nana to think less of me. But several months into our relationship, she bought new sheets and extra pillows for Matt’s bed — point taken!”

‘Thank you for always worrying about me, I love you.’ I’ll never forget the words she texted.’: Woman devastated after sister dies of heroin overdose alone, homeless, on park bench
“Our father, who wasn’t around for our life, provided her a hotel room on Christmas Eve. While she was thankful for that, we could never understand how he could let her be homeless. We could never understand his non-emotion. My dearest sister was left to die in the cold.”

‘I never got to see your face, but I’m still your mother. I loved you the moment I saw those 2 pink lines.’: Mom pens heartbreaking letter to child lost, ‘I hope you feel us, we’ll never stop loving you’
“I was never able to wrap you in a blanket and breathe you in. I’ll never comfort you when you’re sad, scared, or hurt. But I carried you. I knew you. And when I began losing you, when you started to leave my body much too early, a part of me went with you. I hope you know you would have fit right in with us. I hope you feel us. Because we will never stop loving you.”

Mom Expresses Importance Of Boundaries And Teaching Children About Consent
“I said, ‘He obviously doesn’t want to be touched.’ She huffed away, muttering that he was rude.”

‘He doesn’t buy flowers or cook romantic meals, but he always pushes the grocery cart.’: Woman reminds us ‘love is found’ in small gestures
“If his restaurant order is better, he’ll switch plates. He knows all my favorite ‘lady products’ and will run to the pharmacy for me. He unloads the groceries while I sit with the seat warmers on. Every time. I wasted years looking for the love shown in movies, disappointed time and time again, instead of paying attention to how HE loves.”