I remember….It was messy. My mom leaving my dad several times. Moving in and out of our lives, until she finally left for good. My dad becoming permanently disabled in a car accident. So at 12, I had to raise myself and care for him…getting a job as janitor in factory at night….so we could eat and keep a roof over our heads. Yet through it all, I knew that I was loved and that my parents were doing the best they could for me. They gave me the most valuable thing they could - their time and what they knew. Through them I gained a life long love of books, music, and poetry. Through hardship I learned to stand alone, to endure, to find beauty and peace in the smallest of things, and to value those tiny moments of happiness and store them away against need. I wouldn’t trade or change any of that. Although I have walked through this world mostly alone, I am free…and mostly I am happy…and it is enough….it has to be, for it is all I have.
