Life as a child was one of exploration, advancement, and amazement. I remember movie nights when my older brother, parents, and I...

The sun came out not long after I was born on a chilly morning in August of 1987 in the heart of Transylvania, Romania. In the black...

My childhood was a tangled mess of emotions that I still have a difficult time unraveling. There were some good memories...

As a young girl, my parents sensed that things weren’t right with me. I would jump back and forth between doing things. I would start...

But then…it was all over, and they divorced when I was just three years old. My dad moved on to yet another young gorgeous woman...

My biological father only stayed in the picture for a few months before leaving. Since then, it was like my mother cropped him out...

I planned to climb out of my castle and ride my white horse to victory. To me, it sounded simple. Unfortunately, no one told me that a...

Love is patient, love is kind. Love does not envy, or boast, or follow the exact schedule you planned. Love is messy, love is...

Quirky and awkward. That’s how most people saw me in middle school and high school. I was the big kid with clumsiness in his DNA...

Being the granddaughter of a famed, yet tormented writer is both a blessing and a curse. My grandmother and the other women in my line...

Every morning, I had to draw from what motivational reserves I had left to get through the day because I felt that just breathing was...

I, on the other hand, was stubborn and lacked religious devotion, putting a gulf between me and my parents where I never felt as close...

While many women in their 20s were enjoying college life, my mom was trying to keep up with her classes and work two jobs all while she...

When I head out to my daily walk in the park, I like to remind myself of the poems I love the most, many of which I know by heart...

My grandma remembers coming over and noticing how pale and sickly I looked as a baby. She would ask my mom, “Aren’t you going to feed her...

My dad worked at IBM as a programmer and was a protective, caring, and loving man. My mom was a professional pianist and the choir...

Growing up I was as happy as a child should be. We lived in this huge empty neighborhood with only a few houses, so we had a lot of room...

I grew up with a warped understanding of love and received little attention from my parents. I searched for affection all my life, but...

As the youngest and only girl in my family, I was spoiled a lot and had tons of fun when I was little. I remember coming down the stairs...

I survived 16 years of military life through premonition, an instinctive survival gift that enabled me to make life saving decisions for...