I am in Dallas, Texas for only a short while longer, and I can’t help but reminisce and reflect like I do every time I am here, every time I am home. When I was growing up here, I was surrounded by the love of my parents and my greatest wish at the time, a baby sister. We went to pray together, watched movies at home together, traveled and went to fairs together, spent time with extended family together, etc…it was truly the happiest of times. One day, in the blink of an eye, my father was gone- forever- just like that; needless to say, our lives changed forever.
My mother, newly widowed, had to raise 2 children alone in a world of people who just didn’t understand her, and no words can ever be enough to truly explain the depth of this statement. My sister had anger, low-self esteem, depressive and manic episodes that were later diagnosed as bipolar and borderline personality disorder, signs of OCD, schizophrenia that led to several dangerously undesirable circumstances to say the least, and a wide array of other problems that she is unable to fully grasp the concept of to this day. My mother stayed strong and positive and is factually one of the greatest women to ever grace the planet earth, and while my sister is consumed by her own negativity and lack of faith and confidence, she is my baby and I love her more than life itself. Long story short, our lives turned upside down, but I was okay.
We moved to Georgia, I went through high school, and I turned 18. Since then, I have been blessed beyond measure to have found who I am and see the big picture of this beautiful life and to have found my faith in God. I continue to remain surrounded by love and have learned to seize each moment and life it to the absolute fullest. I have come out the other side of the greatest tragedy of my life stronger and content and more free than I ever could’ve imagined. I’ve also always had to remain the strong one, to help my mother and my sister be positive and see the big picture and practice compassion and patience and the meaning of true love in this lifetime, just like a family is expected to do for one another. But that doesn’t mean I don’t miss my dad, my past, my childhood, too.
Now that I am engaged to my amazing fiance, I feel like I have started journey into the next part of my life. I have had an amazing near-decade of life as a legal adult: I have achieved my life purpose of becoming a nurse, I have traveled to countless places around the world, I have experienced more things things from my bucket list than I think I could be able to list out on here. But I am getting a second chance at my childhood…except this time, I will be the adult. I have a second chance to have a complete family. A second chance at a family that prays together, watches movies together, travels and has adventures together, visits extended family together and is always there for each other to create for my future children, the happiest of times.
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| Childhood pictures in honor of the sweetest memories |