Gaining amidst the loss

In 2001, I gave birth to twins; they were most beautiful, happy boy and girl we have ever seen. John-Ross and Debbie continue to give us so much joy up and until today with their unconditional love and little mannerisms. They just love to copy mom and dad all the time and try to be just like us. It’s true what they say – our kids mirror us.

We had to move to a little flat in a violence-ridden community and could not go anywhere without a car. We were dependent on other people for everything, including food at one point. In the first years of my babies’ lives, we were blessed with so much beautiful clothes and toys for them, yet I felt cheated. I could not go and choose things for them that I wanted to give them.

Witnessing hi-jackings, prostitution, fighting, drug-abuse and poverty on top of our own dismal situation got the better of us. Soon, depression set in. It was breaking my heart that my kids were missing out on so many things that ‘normal’ kids took for granted. I could not put them in the car and take them to the zoo. In 6 years they have never had a birthday party. They did not even have bicycles and playing outside alone is out of the question, with all the kidnappings and brutal abuse and murder of young kids we see on television and in the media every day. Things are not as they were when I was a little girl.

At least, our little family unit remained intact through all of this and finally we answered the Lord’s call and became born again.

After a lot of intense praying, He has led me to writing this book for teenagers like you, to guide you in making better choices. I am so happy that you are reading it; I missed so much as a teenager and I really feel that if I had the chance to be a teenager again, I would make different choices. My life could have been so much better if I had the knowledge I have now when I was a teenager.

This book is not written to see you through your teens, but to equip you for later in your life when you are an adult and you need time to develop these skills and become proficient in them so that you can rise all the way to the top!

Wisdom and understanding flood my mind and heart as I thank our Lord for bringing me to a place where I get to make a difference. What a gift!