L.A.M.B.S.

I was watching an episode of What Not to Wear yesterday. Hey, don’t judge me. I like fashion and I like seeing Cinderella stories. Anyway, the episode was about a woman named Dolly. She was on the show because her friends recommended her for a makeover. Well . . . while she was going through the mandatory clothes shopping and aesthetic makeover, she had a seminal moment.  Each time the hosts mentioned to her that she was pretty and each time they asked her why she didn’t think so or why she didn’t feel that she was worthy of doing something nice for herself, she clammed up and got emotional. Eventually she let it out.  She was sexually abused as a child and one of the effects of that abuse was that she covered her body and dressed like a man to make herself less attractive and less noticeable. WOW! This was a woman who I’m guessing was in her forties or fifties at the time of filming. Yet, there she stood with tears in her eyes and with the small voice of a child, a...

Sometimes, you must walk alone. Today, I went for a morning walk to clear my head. You see, I made a big decision recently and since that moment, I’ve begun noticing things. I’ve noticed how people really are selfish. They ask how you are doing but they don’t really care. I mean, if they did, wouldn’t they come back to you with follow-up questions or call you to check on you later? When you talk to them, they tell you that they will support you and then conveniently forget you when their lives get busy. A typical conversation might go like this: Them: “Hey, how are you doing? I was just thinking about you the other day.” You: “Well, I’ve been feeling a bit low lately. You know, I just left the doctor’s office and the news wasn’t encouraging, and it’s challenging to build a ministry around a subject that no one wants to hear about.” Them: “Oh yeah. I know. I had surgery last year, but I did fine. Remember how much pain I was in? Girl, I’m so glad you were the...

This week, I saw another video about sexual abuse. Two best friends made a video expressing that one had experienced molestation and the other had experienced bullying. I was so touched that I shared the video on my personal Facebook page, thinking that others would comment and stand up for these young ladies and for all the women who have experienced abuse. To my disappointment, only two people commented on the post. I was angry. I am angry. My joy for these young ladies finding their voices and being able to ‘speak’ their truth turned into anger toward the people who would rather keep them silent. I am angry that people who claim to love me still don’t support my work of giving a voice to women who have experienced sexual assault and sexual abuse. Oh, they support me privately, where no one can see them. They send me text messages and inbox messages and emails that no one can see. God forbid that they have a public opinion about violence against women. Did I mention t...