Thoughts of Encouragement are always helpful. I would like to tell you a story of hope. It’s really a simple story. It was a dark day in my life when my mother died and our father left us. I was four and my world had just shifted into what felt like a deep, dark pit. I would wake up shaking, wondering what horrible thing was going to happen next. Every day brought additional pain and sorrow. I went from a happy-go-lucky child to feeling like I was a freak. Isolation, embarrassment, and the painful sense of loss all seemed to consume me. My siblings and I were told no one wanted the three of us.

Soon after our father left, my siblings were taken away, causing me to mourn for my sister and brother. All I wanted was to feel safe, loved, and wanted.