Most recently published stories in Families.
My Dearest Chandler, I carried you for nine months and as time went on I continued carrying you in my arms and my heart. You are at the tender age of two now and we have been separated since December 9, 2018. My sweet little boy, mommy made a difficult decision to change your future for the better. The relationship was toxic between your dad and me, and you witnessed most of it. Neither of us is perfect and we both failed you for that to carry on. Things were said that made me fearful of taking you with me, so that night, I kissed you on the cheek, with tears streaming down my face I walked out.
Thursday March 21, 2019 10:45 AM: The loss of a child is an all-consuming sadness that takes you to places you never thought existed. Whether by death or by circumstances, the all too painful experience makes you question your own existence. I, myself, have lost a child to miscarriage and another to circumstance. When I miscarried, I mourned, and with time I accepted this painful experience.
Being a tween feels extremely challenging in the moment—everything feels overwhelming and like it’s the end of the world. Your teen might start to feel like they’re lacking the confidence they had as a child. This is something that happens when children start growing and thinking about their peers and the world around them.
Expecting a new addition to your family? Whether this is your first, second, or fifth time doing this, this list may benefit you, but it's especially beneficial to first time moms and dads to be.
After logging many miles in the family roadster searching for such attractions as the largest ball of twine or the site of the turning point in the Civil War, or flying cross country visiting places like amusement parks and national attractions, you might be ready for something more. But just because you are ready to show your family the world does not mean you are prepared. Traveling with the family can be daunting if you are not prepared.
One day, a couple of years ago, I was watching TV, when an Amber Alert ticked across the bottom of the screen. It was for a 16-year-old boy in the next town over. The description the parents gave the authorities and media in an attempt to find their son shocked me. It read: "16-year-old black male, black hair, brown eyes. Last seen possibly wearing blue jeans, and an unknown shirt. Witnesses reported four abductors as also being black males, in an older model blue car."
It isn't up to the child to reach out to the parent. I've been estranged from my father for nearly seven months. This isn't the first time we've been estranged and, undoubtedly, it won't be the last.
I'm gonna tell y'all about something I witnessed a while back that bothered my soul. It's been about four years now but if I'm still thinking about it, then obviously I need to get it out of my system...
As I’m writing this, tears flow down my face, stemming from a pain that I thought wasn’t there anymore. A pain that I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. A pain that only writing has healed over time. When my parents first separated, everyday was hard. After a while, some days became easy, and only some were hard. Now I am at a place in my life where most days are easy, and only a few are hard. Those are usually the big days, the holidays, the birthdays, days where I daydream that our family is back together. Days where I envision going to “my parents'” house instead of one or the other’s. Today is not big, but writing this made it "one of the those days."
My oldest brother, Arthur Jr., always looked out for his younger siblings. I remember him making things for me at school and presenting them to me, his baby sister, with so much pride. He was in the third grade by the time I was born. He and I never even went to the same school due to our age difference. Although we became distant for a few years as adults, by the time he and his third wife separated, we were close again.
Buying something for yourself is one gleeful thing, and buying for the people dear to you is another sweet one. What a great delight it is to give love and appreciation to your parents through material gifts, aside from the intangible things.
At age 20, I experienced something I never wish I would ever experience in my life, losing a child. So I am going to give you a back story on what happened.