“When asked about my parents, I’d lie. My go-to story was, ‘My parents work out of state, that’s why they can’t be here.’ How could I tell these kids the truth? How does a 3rd grader explain the hell they’ve been through?”
‘I watched my dad get taken by the police. I was playing in the neighbor’s yard. The officers crept up MY DRIVEWAY. I I hugged onto his legs, begging him not to go.’
‘Casey had no idea what was happening to the woman he married. He thought I was no longer happy in our marriage. All he wanted was the woman he married. I could not do this one thing.’
“I became very closed off and did not want to communicate with my husband, the one I was supposed to be sharing my life with. I felt like I was letting him down, when in reality all he wanted from me was the woman he married.”
‘I hear Bon Jovi say, ‘You dropped something! It’s stuck to your foot.’ I turned around. Was it a black handkerchief? No… What was that?’
“I was going to say, ‘It’s not mine!! I have Tonsillitis.’ But who was I kidding? It was the size of a parachute, and it was mine. When I left the house, I grabbed old jeans that I whipped off before a shower yesterday, but had neglected to take my underwear out of.”
‘He didn’t know this boy lost his dad, has been on the waiting list for a ‘big brother,’ and lives with his mom and sister, yet he was still kind enough to say ‘yes.’: Special needs mom touched by employee’s act of kindness
“See this guy right here? While working at the front desk, he looked up to find a random kid standing in front of him asking if he’d like to see a card trick. Let me tell you all the stuff Kahlief didn’t know.”
‘My 7-year-old daughter asked me to snuggle. ‘I can’t. Someone has to clean up dinner, and APPARENTLY that someone is me.’: Woman urges other mothers to slow down, ‘Cleaning can wait’
“As I walked back in from handling the garbage, I overheard the conversation between my daughter and husband. ‘Mom won’t sit down.’ Those four words made me want to cry, and also irritated me.”
‘I was released from the hospital. I went to my mom’s. She’s a chronic relapsing alcoholic. We went to lunch. I ordered what I referred to as ‘my last beer.’ Not even half believing that was true.’
“We started going on Wednesday nights because they served $.25 cent beers on tap. We always requested a specific server, Jeff, because he always took special care of my daughter, Maggie. It slowly turned into flirting. 6 weeks later, I moved in with him.”
‘I want to leave. Your grandpa is scaring me. Pleeeeaase!’ My friend shuffled in and closed the door. Her face was red, and she was crying. She looked terrified.’: Woman overcomes sexual abuse, vows to protect daughter
“Grandma would witness him touching me and she would quickly brush it off. ‘Don’t do that! That’s you’re granddaughter!’ He’d laugh and say, ‘Not by blood. Haha.’”
‘My girlfriend and I were scuba diving. There was an accident. I went too deep for too long. She held her breath, and stopped breathing shortly after. She was declared dead.’: Man finds love after devastating loss
“She came to introduce herself, but I was avoiding any contact. The moment my eye caught a glimpse of her though, I knew she would be trouble for me. She was so elegant, but I wanted nothing to do with women. I was rebuilding myself after a life changing accident.”
‘I found out the Friday before Thanksgiving.’: Women shares journey with invasive dual carcinoma
“They gathered around me, each taking turns cutting off locks of my hair to send in for a wig. I was always the one cutting my kids hair. I never thought I would be put in the chair. As I sat, I cried alone as my eyelashes fell out into my weeping eyes.”
‘When my mother passed, she left behind an old tape she recorded in secret. She made it in increments. I couldn’t cry. It was my job to stay strong. I’ve listened to it dozens of times.’
“As her health declined throughout the years, I cradled her frail body. ‘I won’t let go,’ I told her. I was no longer the child. The roles reversed.”
I Let My Son Wear Dresses, Because Kids Deserve To Be Happy And Free
“I will not be the mother to shame my children. I will ALWAYS fight for them. I will let them be happy and teach them to be proud of who they are.”
‘My sister whispered during one of those many hours, ‘Dad is teaching us how to die.’ The man who named the project suddenly became the subject.’
“We watched him go from a life-loving, bike-riding, wine-drinking, book-writing, word-weaving, soul-enriching mensch, to ashes in a box on my mother’s mantle in some of the shortest, yet longest weeks of my life.”
‘As a younger wife this made me irritated. ‘Don’t I have enough to clean up daily after the kids!’ I actually felt bitterness about it.’
“Every day I pick up the towel he hangs on our curtain rod and throw it on a hook in the bathroom, put his hair gel back in the bathroom drawer that was 3 inches from where he placed it, close literally every dresser drawer, and pick up at least two pairs of his shoes somewhere in the house.”
Army Wife Battles Lupus And Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome To Become Mom Of 2
“Even on my sickest days, my husband is assuring me I’m an amazing mother to our children, and that I am the most beautiful woman he has ever seen.”
‘For some of us, especially us mothers, there are certain minutes where time stands still and we just know we’ll remember every detail surrounding that specific memory.’
“There are many of us invisible parents, with only children we hold in our hearts rather than our arms. We don’t have any other living children to help ease the pain and ache, but let me assure you, our motherhood and fatherhood is valid and important, and our children’s lives matter.”
‘My doctor held my hand and started, ‘Tami…’ In that moment, I knew. I couldn’t breathe because I knew. Or at least I thought I did. My heart exploded with relief!’
“We were walking out of the house when a feather floated right in front of us. As we sat enjoying our morning coffee, another tiny feather made an appearance. On the drive home, I kept thinking … two feathers … what does that mean? But I had a hunch. I went straight to the bathroom and found a pregnancy test.”
‘Desperate, I messaged her. We had nothing in common but our abuser. She immediately said, ‘Come stay with me.’: Women become best friends after surviving same abuser, ‘I can’t imagine life without her’
“I was carrying our abuser’s baby after I had accused her of lying about him. ‘I’m so sorry for not believing you.’ I was nothing to her, and she took me in. When she walked into that elevator, I grabbed her and hugged her tight. She held me back and just cried uncontrollably.”
‘I put you in your mom’s arms so you could be snuggled while you drifted off to sleep. I hid behind the curtain and shed silent tears. I still hear the echo of, ‘I’m so sorry, but he is gone.’: Nurse recalls ‘absolute honor’ of caring for CHD patient
“I remember every single detail about this day. I knew what I was coming into, but in no way was I prepared for it. Your nurses before me had gotten you so handsome, dressed for your family. You looked so small in that big bed.”
‘Even when we fuss about how ‘chubby’ we look in. Even if we moan the angle isn’t good, I promise you this: We want to be seen. We want to be remembered. And it means the world to us, when you take our picture.’
“I know this isn’t something on the forefront of your mind, and that’s okay. We don’t need every special moment documented…but, let’s be honest. We spend a lot of time doing just that for everyone else. Please.”
‘If I took all of those pills, maybe I would go to sleep and never wake up.’ I scrubbed myself raw. I couldn’t get clean.’: Woman discovers husband’s multiple affairs, ‘I felt dirty’
“I got a call from my best friend’s husband. It was clear he didn’t really know how to say it. ‘If it were me I would want to know.’ My hands and feet got hot and sweaty. It was so many people… so many of my friends were involved. I couldn’t trust anyone. All I could do that week was sob, hysterically sob and compulsively take showers.”
‘Help me get daddy out!,’ she begged. ‘He won’t like being dirty.’ I took her to see his grave. She started digging up the dirt, crying her little heart out. We sobbed until we had no more tears to cry.’
“She was 3. That was the last time I took her to his grave. She told me her ‘heart hurt too’ much and she didn’t want to go back. She asks if our family can die and ‘be a star in the sky with daddy.’ I go straight into Mommy mode and reassure her we can’t be stars. It’s not our time.”
‘Evil never takes a day off. So, how can I?’ The man of my dreams died a mere 8 months after being diagnosed with this horrible disease. ‘How can this be?,’ the nurse in me kept asking.’
“I begrudgingly shared my email with her. She thought I’d be a good fit for her son, who she said looked like Matt Damon. He walked into my apartment wearing ‘white snake jeans,’ a brown trucker shirt, and black shiny shoes. Obviously, it was not his wardrobe that won me over.”
Kind 13-Year-Old Boy Surprises Struggling Mom With Car
“I am so proud of my son. He is such a good kid.”
‘When I opened my eyes my husband was as pale as the floor, sitting on the other side of me, breathing heavily, sweating, and staring at the floor.’
“The doctor inserted her torture device. I remember cursing loudly and then profusely apologizing, as the pain was excruciating. I covered my face and wanted to scream. During this time I felt Nick’s hand fall away. He was on the brink of passing out.”
‘It all clicked, and I thought, ‘Oh my God. I’m not straight!’: Woman realizes she is gay after years of repressed emotions
“Here I was, at age 32, realizing this for the first time with a husband and 3 children by my side. I felt utterly alone.”