“My first reaction was to be defensive; my second was the opposite. The second reaction came when I realized why I carry these key chains. Jamie was 5 years sober when he bought a pill he didn’t know was fentanyl, and he died. Jamie was 29 years old. He was a dad to five kids.”
‘I didn’t know that about you,’ said a patient at work. I was embarrassed to be placed in the same category.’: Widow shares why she carries late fiancé’s Narcotics Anonymous key chains
‘That new car they just got. The house they built, the trip they went on. You don’t have to keep up, sis.’: Woman urges ‘when you love everything you have, you have everything you need’
“I let someone else’s highlight reel persuade me into thinking I needed to do more, be more, achieve more, make more. I’ve been so distracted lately by the success of others that I’ve taken my eyes off my own. So here I am, with my 11-year-old SUV, and still going strong.”
‘What’s your kid’s biological mom’s name?’ Our kids’ sister had been placed with my best friend. My heart leaped.’: Couple adopts 5 siblings from foster care, ‘There was a greater purpose in it all’
“I picked up my phone and thought to myself, ‘Hmm, I wonder what she’s up to.’ I saw an image I thought was a mistake. It was baby number 4. ’Somehow, someway, send that baby to her siblings.’ I knew in my heart we were going to experience this all over again.”
‘He is nothing short of a miracle.’: Couple adopt boy in critical condition
“‘I don’t think he has any real family.’ The nurse looked up and loudly proclaimed, ‘Noah, your new mommy and daddy are here!’ We both smiled as big as we could at the little boy in the hospital bed with the swollen head and adorable chubby cheeks.”
‘This isn’t normal behavior.’ His lip marks were all over the window. She saved me that night.’: Mother survives grief predator with daughter’s help, ‘There is hope’
“‘Just stop it! Act normal! I don’t even know this person you’re acting like!’ I was sitting firmly in the ‘acute sorrow, helplessness, hopelessness, depression, and despair’ section. I suffered greatly at the hands of this man, and so did my child.”
‘Daddy knows and loves Mrs. Goodner, and I do, too.’ It shocked me.’: Mom thanks teacher for supporting daughter through grief journey, ‘It meant the world to us’
“Her whole world had just come crashing down around her. But she just kept reaching out and hugging her teacher. It shocked me.”
‘Locked in their cells, they saw our deputy fall to the concrete floor. Soon, the entire unit was pounding on their doors.’: Inmates rescue unconscious deputy, ‘There is goodness’
“These inmates had no obligation whatsoever to aid a bleeding, vulnerable deputy, but they didn’t hesitate.”
‘WHAT IF THEY TAKE MY KIDS?’ I dig around the house, opening boxes and leaving folders full of paper sprawled open like a tornado hit it.’: Mom shares ‘one hour in a life with anxiety’
“My brain is on hyperdrive. ‘They’ll probably arrest you, too. But is the gate closed? The dog can escape if the gate isn’t closed.’ Now, it’s 9:30 p.m. and I’m lying in bed having a panic attack because I can’t prove my kids are even mine. The only solution was to get out of bed.”
‘Did you get kicked in the face by a horse?’ In that moment, I saw red.’: Woman shares cleft lip and palate surgeries to give other parents hope
“To tell you I was hurt doesn’t do it justice. In that moment, I saw red. ‘No, I was born with a cleft lip and palate.”
‘Get those kids out of here!’ They began chest compressions. The pictures showed a happy family. Would I ever have that?’: Foster youth becomes adoptive mom after ‘aging out’
“I realized I’d be ‘aging-out’ of care. No one ever adopted me. I had to get a job and work. I needed to save money. I cried. I cried for the sacrifices I was forced to make.”