A Reason for Hope

 

A Reason for Hope

I wrote “Ghettos Forgotten Daughters” to encourage young black women and Black girls all over the world. Most of these girls may have often times, grown up in almost impossible situations. I want them to understand that they can make it out of the ghettos, not necessarily just the physical locations but also the ghettos of the mind and spirit.

Growing up in Studewood, TX during the 80’s was right around the time when our communities were flooded with crack cocaine and my family and I lived smack dab in the middle of it all.  I can recall seeing drug deals, women commit sexual acts, and men being shot down right in front of our duplex apartment. All of this coupled with domestic violence and sexual abuse made me into a very lost and confused young woman.  The children of our community did not have a chance, one way or another, to have an innocent upbringing. We were thrown right into the fire of a harsh reality of either you were going to push through everything that you saw and still do something with your life, or you were going to become a statistic. Well, I became a statistic for a while—I didn’t really see a way out of my hopelessness.  I dropped out of school and three to four years later I had two children out of wedlock.

Now, while I was living my life the way that I choose to live it, I still blamed my parents for everything in my life, because I had chosen to live my life living out my life as a victim.  I hadn’t exorcised my demons at all! I hadn’t forgiven my parents, and I was living out my life via a pity party. Please understand that because I learned everything the wrong way, and the only way that I was going to see a way out was to change my whole perspective on life. The hardest thing a person will ever have to do is tell themselves that everything that you learned to this point was wrong. Your very identity and your core beliefs would be challenged and sometimes it would just be too hard to face. I mean, where does one even start?

I can remember my younger brother, Terrance, saying to me not very long ago, where do I even start to change my life? I was hurt and floored at the same time because I would have to tell him from the very beginning. When life should have been safe and secure for you yet it was a nightmare, is where you will have to start.

Learning life the way my brothers and I learned it made our lives a living hell, and whenever we tried to muddle our way out of that way of life and to free ourselves from that type of thinking, we would be turned back to confront our past.

My prayers for everyone that reads my book or hears me speak is that they understand that it is not your fault that you were born in such conditions. You are not a mistake and you are not your parent’s choices. Forgive the people that you need to forgive, so that you can have the life that you deserve. Learn how to love yourself through the reading of GOD’s word and prayer. Please understand that you are someone special and if no one has ever told you, I love you! I love you because you are my sister! I love you because you are my brother! And I love you because GOD is love and he lives in me.

Be Encouraged ~ Marion Myers

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