I define myself as a survivor. The struggles in my life have defiantly made me who I am today and who I want to be in the future. In my life there has been violence, poverty, abuse, abandonment, etc. I’m still standing. I never once let life chain me to the ground. When ever I started to fall, I just persevered and swept the dust off my shoulder. I’ve prevailed on the streets and in shelters, which made me work harder so I never have to step into another shelter. I saw my siblings apprehended from my mother as a result of drugs. My brother was put in foster care. My desire to see him was abundant. I craved to see his first steps and hear his first words. I missed out on both due to mistakes. I vowed to never put my children in that position. I watched my mother fail in a relationship and get beat down like she was nothing but dirt. I watched spit furiously fly with angry screams from my mother and the beast she says she “loves,” which made me more cautious of whom I trust.