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Reclaiming the Self After Maternal Abandonment Every year as my children grow, I’m reminded of the girl I once was. Having two children and a bonus daughter has given me the deepest mirror into my own soul. Through them, I’ve been forced to meet parts of myself I had long buried. Watching my daughter—now 11—move
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I was searching through my journals to find the exact date that I met my mother again in Washington. To my surprise, it was exactly 24 years ago today as I write this post—July 5th, 2001. Crazy timing and alignment. How apropos. July 5th, 2001 That morning, after showering, I found a silver dolphin necklace
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After the night my dad refused to let me go with my mom, everything changed. I started asking questions. What really happened when I was little? Why did she leave? Why didn’t she come back? Why wouldn’t he let me go with her that night? He never answered my questions until now. And then he
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I was 12 years old, desperate, and living in survival mode. I was living in a trailer on my grandparent’s property with my father, who was addicted to meth and other drugs. He was paranoid, abusive, and couldn’t hold a job. It was one of the scariest times of my life. I longed for connection—especially