Shannon heard her stepfather coming up the stairs and quickly raced for the closet where she had already prepared her hiding place. Huddled under a pile of clothing, she listened as he came closer. He stopped as he entered the room and she knew he would be surprised to find her bed empty. He must be trying to figure out where to look next. Her heart pounded so hard she thought he must surely be able to hear it and she scarcely breathed as he stopped outside the closet door. Opening it slowly he looked inside but seemed unable to see her as he closed it and walked into another room. He called her name but she lay motionless until she heard him on the stairs. After a few more drinks he would pass out in front of the TV but afraid he might come back, she waited until she heard her mother come home from work. She slowly and quietly opened the closet door and tiptoed back to bed. Sleep did not come. Shannon got up less than an hour later and went to school, one of the rare occasions when she actually got there on time. One of her teachers noticed her falling asleep in class and asked her if she felt all right. Shannon admitted that she didn't and was sent to the nurse's office. The nurse stroked her head as she took her temperature and Shannon began to cry. She didn't even plan to talk about it because she knew she would get in trouble if she ever told anyone, but something about today seemed different. After hiding in her closet for most of the night she knew she could no longer live in fear of being beaten or molested and she made a decision to tell just one person. Fortunately, the school nurse acted immediately. Thus began a new chapter in Shannon's life when her impossible home situation came to the attention of the autho... ... middle of paper ... ...ion their choice of the same type of man time after time. Amazingly, Shannon survived with her mental health intact. She went to college where she excelled. She eventually became a senior manager in a store near her home. However, as an adult she suffers from post traumatic stress syndrome with flashbacks and nightmares from which she seems unable to escape. Her years of stress and abuse have taken a toll on her physical health as well and she is plagued by several issues that will likely be with her for the rest of her life. This isn’t particularly a story with a happy ending, though it might seem so. After all, Shannon did survive and has accomplishments in her life of which she can be proud. It is probably safe to say that the outcome was about as good as it could be under the circumstances. But what a sad commentary on a life deprived of a childhood.
Growing up Mary Karr didn't have a “stable” childhood. Her parents Pete and Charlie had many obstacles they faced throughout their life. Pete, who worked at a graveyard at the oil refinery was an alcoholic. He would drink every day, whether it was at home or with the liars club, he always had a drink in his hand. Charlie, who dealt with many illnesses such as an anxiety disorder and being a hypochondriac was not the best role model in Mary and Lecia life. At only 2 years old, Charlie almost died of pneumonia. After surviving that, she wasn't a normal kid, she had many issues.
Shannon Lee Miller was born on Thursday, March 10, 1997. Coming into the world was not all that spectacular. She almost came in without a name. Ron and Claudia, Shannon’s parents, along with other daughter Tessa lived in Rolla, Missouri at the time. Her parents had been tossing around names but could not settle on one. Even in the delivery room they had trouble making their choice. Shannon’s mother, Claudia, preferred more unique names and on the other hand her father liked more common ones. Claudia got the name Shannon from someone she who had suggested the name to her while she was in a bookstore. Claudia presented the name to Ron, and on the delivery table they agreed to name the baby Shannon.
...l of her journey, she always tried, sometimes successfully and sometimes not, but she did try to move on. She also learned forgiveness, to others and to herself. Her story is incredibly insightful to the realities of the world. Her problems were none too out of the ordinary; death, infidelity, drugs, scandal- at least one of those is in everyone's life. She admits, “I’d done a lot of dumb and dangerous things in my life…”(Strayed 94). The way she handled certain situations was not the best, but that is what made her life a learning process and more importantly that is the story that has inspired so many lives today.
Susie’s mother opened the door to let Molly, Susie’s babysitter, inside. Ten-month old Susie seemed happy to see Molly. Susie then observed her mother put her jacket on and Susie’s face turned from smiling to sad as she realized that her mother was going out. Molly had sat for Susie many times in the past month, and Susie had never reacted like this before. When Susie’s mother returned home, the sitter told her that Susie had cried until she knew that her mother had left and then they had a nice time playing with toys until she heard her mother’s key in the door. Then Susie began crying once again.
I related so much to her story that while i was reading i turned so red. The story about what happened to her is my life ever since i was in middle school. I always turned tomato red when i had to present or even read in front of my class. The way she typed everything in detail is what made me feel like i was in her position. Like i stated before it seemed that she sat there already knowing what she was going to write, but as i learned from the stories before it all went down with a “shitty first draft”. I would have to say that i completely loved this story it was a short well described paper. I stand up and applaud for this girl. Not only for writing such a good spot of time paper but for being brave and having to live through that through middle
Experiencing a traumatic event can be emotionally challenging; however, many people have shown significant psychological growth and positive psychological change as a result. Speak illustrates the story of a girl who grows stronger as she overcomes her traumatic life event. It demonstrates that by facing her trauma she is able to deal with difficult memories and emotions. As she comes to the realization that she is not responsible for her victimization, she is able to heal and recover. At first, she is negatively affected, but as she grows, she finds the courage to speak up for herself. In Speak written by Laurie Halse Anderson, Melinda’s personal growth is positively impacted by overcoming her depression, isolation,
Brenda suffered a lot as a child, she was always bullied in school and always f...
It was a dark cold night in December. Opening the door to their house, the den sat quiet as usual, but something else was different. Walking to the living room, I did not hear a voice that always greeted me with joy. There was no room for joy, or laughter anymore. When I sat down, my Pa Pa’s bed sat across from me. I could see the bones through his skin, the bagginess of his white t-shirt, and the sadness that rest in his eyes. On his lips, a smile no longer lived. “Hi Pa Pa”, I say as I walked over to k...
‘Maddie visited me in ICU and got punished for it. Her injuries weren’t physically as bad, but it caused a lot of psychological issues and she had nightmares afterwards.’
Terri Steward grew up in an environment as being the first child .She was the first grand baby, oldest child from her brother and sister, and oldest niece. For being the oldest one for everything, she learned how to take care of others but she didn’t know how to take care of herself. She will try to escape from her pain that was haunting her by drinking and smoking. Drinking and smoking it’s all she knew in her life. She did not know people who didn’t do drugs excited.
This is the story of Melinda Sordino, an ordinary fourteen year-old girl who is going to start freshman year in high school. This is obviously a very big step for anyone but she is dreading her first day more than anything. Melinda is starting high school with no friends and a horrible secret that she cannot discuss with anyone. From the very first step she takes that day, Melinda is alone. One night at a wild high school party during the summer, Melinda gets raped by one senior student from her own school. After she calls the police that night, her closest friends have abandoned her and random classmates now snub her simply because she couldn’t talk to anyone about it. As the story goes on, Melinda has an internal conflict with herself everyday
...act her mind from all the mental breakdowns she was having. The physical pain opted out cheryl from grieving. Regardless of the fact that people expected Cheryl to fail while walking the trail, she ended stronger and proved everyone wrong. The baggage she carried with while walking the trail also made her a better person as she continued her journey, and when her journey was over she had no regrets. Through all of the physical, mental, and emotional pain, she tried her best to remain strong. The way she dealt with her problems was dysfunctional to some people; however, it made her a better person in the end.
When Gabby falls in love with Travis, she never thought that their story would take the journey that it did. Many people, in real life, are the same. They never thought that the journey they would take in life together would have the same tragedy that Gabby and Travis experienced. A couple by the name of Brooke and Margaret Hopkins had the same experience. Margaret’s husband, Brooke, was riding a bicycle when he rounded a curve and collided with another cyclist. He took the fall landing on his head and breaking his neck. He had stopped breathing but a nurse that happened to be coming by stopped and rescued him. Brooke ended
After a traumatic experience early in her life in two, cheerless foster homes, and then an orphan...
As I walked in to their bedroom, I found my mother sitting on the bed, weeping quietly, while my father lay on the bed in a near unconscious state. This sight shocked me, I had seen my father sick before, but by the reaction of my mother and the deathly look on my father’s face I knew that something was seriously wrong.