The ’80s of self-indulgence and “It’s all about me” has turned us into “Nobody understands what I am going through” and “Nobody cares.” There is power in the memoirs on the bookshelves today, with such authors as Dave Pelzer, Carol Burnett, Mackenzie Phillips, Ashley Judd, and Shania Twain. These authors are giving us positive nourishment and starting conversations. We are reconnecting with our neighbors across the street as well as across the globe, with two common threads—we are all human beings and we are not alone. These books allow a reader to open up at their own pace. The memoirs of today contain everything, from abandonment to the taboo. Still, these books are all basically one person talking to another, with the exception you know exactly what the subject is about. The books give you a voice that inspires you to take the next step to be able to talk to your family and friends.
I have spent my life with some of the right people, but mostly all the wrong people, hoping they could show me I am a worthy human being. In this story, I have brought together all my challenges and teachers that are now my allies to tell the story of my life. In those seconds when you have looked soul to soul with someone to fight for your worth and your heart pounds and your mouth is dry, you can only hope that in those fleeting seconds they have looked deep enough to see you. We all want to have our voices heard; sometimes we just need a little help.