What became of this little girl

Today is this little girl’s birthday.

This little girl had a hell of a childhood. Her father was an alcoholic and her mother was codependent and an enabler. Her mother was much more concerned about her father than she was the little girl. This little girl had to grow up long before she should have. Her childhood was a nightmare.

There was one particular rainy night when she was only eight years old. Her family lived in what would now be referred to as “the projects”. The so-called homes were actually military housing that even the military didn’t want anymore. Her daddy was drunk and raising hell for more liquor. There was no way her momma was going to let him drive in that condition so she left the little girl at home with her sister, who was almost two, and she drove the little girl’s daddy to accommodate his addiction. The little girl cried because she didn’t want to be left at home on that dark and rainy night. That didn’t stop them from leaving her though. As they drove away, the baby woke up and began to cry. The little girl went in and picked the baby up. She carried the baby with her to the closed backdoor . The upper half of the door was a glass window. The little girl just stood there holding the crying baby and looking out into the darkness. All she saw was her own reflection in the glass pane. She leaned her face against the cold glass and she cried too. The raindrops were running down the glass on the outside and her tears were running down the glass on the inside. She was so afraid. She felt so helpless. She worried, what if they didn’t come back? Why wouldn’t the baby stop crying? Then she realized that no one was going to help her. There was no one to turn to. She had to do this all by herself. That night was a turning point for the little girl in so many ways. Her parents did come back safe and sort of sound and she and the baby were okay. Maybe that was the night she learned that no matter how hard and sad and frightening life could be, she could get through it.

I believe that was the night when that little girl decided there would be nothing she couldn’t handle. I believe that was the night she became determined never to give up. I know there were times when she wondered if she wanted to keep going, times when she doubted the struggle would produce anything of value. But she hung in there. She let no one get her down. She did everything she could to overcome all the obstacles carelessly thrown in her path.

Had this little girl not been the person that she was, I wouldn’t be who I am today. Thanks to that strong and determined little girl, my life is different today. I owe her my gratitude. She was just a little girl with the weight of the world on her shoulders but she struggled on, and as a result, today I am the woman that I am. She lit the candles and she made the wishes, and because of her I am able to blow out the candles and see her wishes come true. I surely owe a debt of gratitude to the little girl I was when life was so lonely and so sadly difficult. She created my strength and my determination. Because of her decisions, today I have the life she always dreamed I would have. I’m having a very happy birthday today and watching all my wishes come true. That little girl is very happy too.