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Most recently published stories in Families.
Have a good day, live life to the fullest.
Reguarding Were We Live (Raise): As we walk around our city everyday and we also take the community transit sometimes, we get the same feeling's over and over again. Feeling like they are watching us and there putting us down, is it because we don't dress like them, is it because we can't afford a nice apartment like them. As the feeling of them talking and staring at us, we begin to get affended. We become so insecure about our self and about where we come from because of so many judgemental people in our community. Yes we understand that some of us may be living in a rundown area were we have to watch out for everything around us. It is scary for us to live in this kind of environment and for us to be worried about what is going to happen and when it is going to happen. Not only that but we also worry so much for our family's coming back and forth form the apartment to school or from anywhere at that. But at this moment in time it is hard for us because we cant afford a decent apartment in a good area. The reason we live were we live is because of the struggles and complication that we have had to deal with in our life. We may be in this perdicument due to our family paying for our medical bills, could be because we lost everything in a fire, or it could also be because we use when ever bit of money to put food in our place to feed our family. There are plenty of possibility's and reasons why we all live were we live. We all should be thinking about each others possible reasons for were they are living weather its in a rundown home in a bad area or living in a well maintained building in a nice quiet area because that shouldn't describe who we are as human beings.
By SmilingSams. 6 years ago in Families
How Eminem Saved My Life
I remember when I listened to Eminem aka Marshall Mathers for the first time. I was ten years old. I found a cassette tape buried in the back of the medicine cabinet when I was bored one night. I decided to look through the cabinet that had old prescriptions, new prescriptions and various random items. I picked Eminem's cassette out from a pile of about 6 of them and got lucky that the whole Marshall Mathers LP was recorded onto the back and the front of the cassette; I had to switch sides by track 8.
By Natalie Way6 years ago in Families
Tree Cutters
"Alright, Mother!" I shouted, running into the jungle. Joáo was playing catch with his friends. He wasn't paying attention, reaching for a ball and slipped off a ledge; falling almost to his death. Mother is fraught with fear. Finding the Cordoncillo plant before nightfall was my duty. The blue sky had already begun to blend gold. I was racing time.
By Gizelle Annette6 years ago in Families
The Life Of A Single Parent
I never thought I would be a single parent , I've always dreamed of being married and then having my child because I wanted complete family like I grew up in. I wanted my child to experience the love in the same home with the same parent. Being a single parent is tough but I believe I'm rocking it out without a problem. Paying daycare, missing work when she' sick also working long hours . So many say they want children my advice to them would be to wait until the right person comes in your life and they want to marry you and start a family with them. Kids are the biggest blessing and i believe when you bring a human in to this world you should want the best for them and you she want them to be as happy as they can be with both parents. Living with one parent and the other one is not active can take a huge toll on a child you will see them cry become angry and even say things that you aren't use to them saying. Just hold them like you normally would and talk to them and be the best Mother/ Father you can be . When they get older they will realize that you was there for them. Growing up in a house hold where i had mother and father was nice it's all my mother wanted for us because she didn't grow up with her dad . She wanted to be sure that we had that happy life with both parents in the home and a lot of kids was jealous of me because i had two parents they would say i thought i was better then everyone. That was not the case at all my dad was in the home but not an active parent with having and open communication relationship with his kids. My dad worked and took care of his family but he was still an absence father. I never got a chance to go to those father daughter dances , donuts with dad none of that because he wasn't really around. I guess that why i had such high hopes for my children and their father. But that didn't go as planned. August the 6th was the best day of my life because I had a human that i loved no matter the situation and no matter how many times her dad and I fought I knew that the love she had for me was unconditional. Now i can't get enough of her I want to know what she's doing how she's doing , I don't want to miss a second of her life because everything counts. Some people say when it comes to my child i crowd her or i smother her but i don't think that's the case I love her more then I have loved anything or anyone and that is the way i should feel about me child no matter the issues the parents have. when you protect your kids energy they will definitely protect your heart. Many people don't know that kids watch and observe a lot of the things that happens and that has happened and they remember who hurt them or who hurt someone that they love. You have to be careful of who your kids are around and who you allow in to their life, this includes family members. Protect your children just as much as you protect other things. Show them how you should treat people you don't have to wait on the other parent when you be the best parent that you can be your child will turn out to be a reflection of their childhood.
By Evonna Hunter6 years ago in Families
What this Song Means to Me
This song holds significant meaning in my life. This song came out about the time my parents separated. I had always looked up to my dad and admired him until he spanked me really hard and hurt me to the point of not being able to sit down.
By Lawrence Edward Hinchee6 years ago in Families
The Bliss of a Child
“For my birthday I want beach,” the forthcoming 4 year old slurred, mouth full of chewed cereal. She corrected herself after finishing her bite of breakfast. “I want to go to the beach for my birthday.” Her name is Jermanie, like the country she was born in, only spelled differently in a way meant to be more cute, more unique but pronounced all the same like Germany. She was born on the sea; her mother was traveling on the US Navy boat as a 2nd in command until her water broke and moments later the introspective child was here. It was like ever since that moment all she thought about was the sea. Call her Moana from Disney if you want or even Ariel the Little Mermaid, all Jermanie thought of was the beach, the ocean, the water. She would cry if she was taken from the bath tub after playtime was over and it was actually time to bathe and her favorite thing to play with, then and even now? A cup of water where she splashes all of her toys around and about. So it didn’t surprise me, her eldest cousin, when she asked to go to the beach for her upcoming 4th birthday. I gave her mother, my aunt a pointed look and we both knew that instead of planning an extravagant elaborate party with happy screaming kids and cake and candy and unicorns decorations galore, we would just take a family trip down to the beach where she could see the “the line where the sky meets the sea” that called her, ergo Moana of course. When we arrived at the beach on her birthday, Jermanie could not contain her excitement. As soon as the car stopped to park, her big and brown doe eyes widened at the vast blue crashing back and forth against the pure white sand that stretched for miles. She was so giddy, the child kicked her flip-flops off in the car, wiggling her toes. It amazed me at how someone who had never in their only four years of living been to the beach, knew so much about the beach, right down to the little moment of happiness that can be given from feeling the sand wiggle and slip between your toes. She smiled her 1000 watt smile once her car seat belt was unbuckled and she was given the “ALL CLEAR” from her mommy and daddy to help us find the perfect spot for her birthday picnic and to settle. She chose gullibly right near the shoreline where the brush of ocean water crashes then flows back but we suggested a little further away in order to avoid ... you know, getting unnecessarily splashed with beach salt water. After settling in, the child skipped merrily to the cold California ocean waters. On a hot summer day, ranging from the high 80s to 90s, the ocean still manages to stay cold but she didn’t mind it. She splashed and played to her heart’s content. It was heartwarming and truly sweet to see a young girl so excited and happy to be in the water. Jermanie jumped head first in and came up to the surface laughing as the wave gently rocked and hit her. She splashed and wiggled around in the water for over an hour. Most kids fear the beach and the waves, not wanting to go near and are mainly fascinated with the sand and making castles; not Jermanie! All she wanted to do that day was play in the water. She dragged me from my comfortable spot, cold water dripping all over onto me and walked me over to stand and watch her skip across the water, giggling all while she did so. I was happy and it touched my heart to see her so blissful at the most smallest thing ever. Although the water was cold and I dreaded standing as the waves crashed and water splashed over my shorts and sometimes onto my shirt, I stood in that spot watching her... then my hand reached for my IPhone tucked in my hand, safe from being wet from the ocean. It was said the new iPhones are waterproof and while I still didn’t want to take any chances, I held it out, clicking over to the portrait mode and began snapping pictures as if I were a photographer. I saw an old trick of finding the perfect lighting so I held my finger down on the camera, locking the focus grid in place, which would activate the AE/AF lock to better keep the camera at the settings I chose. My finger slid down the lighting and I snapped one final picture of her in action, skipping almost gracefully across the water. She came back and hugged me with wide open and wet arms. Jermanie was so happy that day, claiming spending the day at the beach was the best birthday ever. That night once we got home and relaxed, I looked through all of the photos I took of the little one, amazed at the quality and pure emotion shown through just the snap of a picture on my smartphone. This picture truly shows the bliss of a child. A child who loves the beach and a child who is truly enjoying her time on the beach. Not taken on a professional camera but a simple iPhone camera. She was my inspiration that day. Her actions were my subject that day. And this picture truly captures just what the title of this story is. The bliss right of a child.
By Tianna Spence 6 years ago in Families
Now and Forever
Who is this, you may wonder? Well, this man is a son and a father. An Army veteran and someone's fiance. These are things a person could more easily guess. What might be a little harder to imagine would be that he is a Traumatic Brain Injury Survivor, or better yet, a miracle. Every face has a story behind it. Sometimes a person is easy to read or figure out, and other times, we challenge ourselves to understand.
By Eslieann Lefler6 years ago in Families
The Emotional Connect
The Emotional Connect There is a lot of emphasis on academics and curricula; schemes of work and grades or scores. However, essential to all of these is the Emotional Connect. Without this our children cannot be successful. Without this, our most vulnerable learners will continue to be challenged. Moving forward, into a future where jobs, professions and careers may not yet exist emotional stability, connectedness, and resilience could prove to be vital skills. We are moving, ever more, into a future where flexibility and resilience will be fundamental.
By Andrea Dix (www.andreadix.weebly.com)6 years ago in Families
No choice in the Matter
chapter 2 So, here I am once again back in foster care. Now back then I was a child, I couldn’t comprehend exactly what was going on. I had social workers, officers, therapists, judges etc... all these different people questioning me and theorizing my situation. To be that young and not knowing the depths of my own circumstances made me guarded and mad. The child that the Johnsons once knew and cared for was no more. I came back changed, I was hurt, scared and confused. I would soon be labeled a problem child. By the time I went back to them, I was not that sweet little girl they once knew who they had cared for about a 1 1/2 years ago. I came back with bigger problems. I would create havoc every chance I had. Looking back I wasn’t the best child, I was difficult. I was either a fighter or a runner.
By Tywonda Petty6 years ago in Families
