rainbows and unicorns

A lot of the time that I would normally spend thinking about my blog or writing my blog has been spent reading someone else's blog lately.  It's like a book that I literally cannot put down, or turn off, as the case may be. 

It's the story of a girl who lost her mother and her older brother in 9/11.  Her grandmother died shortly thereafter.  She doesn't have a father, just two younger sisters.  She was 9, the middle girl must have been about 6 or 7 and the youngest was just 3 when 9/11 tore their family apart. 

The worst of it is that the three girls were placed with their awful Aunt Elaine, who hates them, calls Sam a whore, and blames them for taking up space and making noise in her home.  She makes them sleep on mattresses on the floor of a tiny bedroom.  She doesn't mother them in any way.  She leaves Sam, the blog author, the responsible party to discipline and nurture the younger two girls.  As if losing your mother isn't bad enough, Sam had to become a mother at age 9.  She shops for (and by shops for, I mean pays for) their groceries, cooks their meals, takes them to the doctor, grounds them, and loves them like a mother and a best friend.  On top of all this, Sam has to cook for and clean up after mean old Aunt Elaine.  It's unbelievable.  I just had to share this blog with you. 

Sam is funny, smart, wise beyond her years, surprisingly honest, not to mention a very compelling writer with a style all her own.  Wow.  My sister told me about this blog and I haven't been able to rip myself away from it ever since. 

If you are a lover of blogs, true stories, heartbreak and triumph, or just like being nosy, I suggest you read this blog from the beginning.  Here's the link to the very first entry.  Or you can start here with the most recent post (though I strongly suggest you start from the beginning).

It got my sister and I talking about what we would want for our children if they were left parentless.  We both agreed that we would want them to be wherever they are loved and hugged and kissed every day, regardless of whether that means they are poor or certain other things have to be compromised.  Above everything else, love is the most important.  I can't imagine having to grow up without it.  But back to Sam - I don't feel sorry for her because after reading her blog, I don't think she would want me to.  She's strong and stubborn and an absolutely amazing young woman.  I hope you'll check out her story. 

 ~C~