Chapter 9: Still Standing: Bumps in the Road Along a Path to Greater Success

I took a deep breath, took in my surroundings one last time, and quietly said goodbye. It would be the last time in my grandmother’s house; the last time I would sit at the kitchen table late at night with a warm ham and cheese sandwich and chocolate milk; the last time I would hear my brother’s jovial laughter; and the last time, as a child, that I would be able to call somewhere home. At 13, I was a homeless orphan—abandoned by my drug-addicted mother and rejected by both my maternal and paternal grandparents. Admittedly, I was a difficult child. Growing up in an environment where physical, sexual, and mental abuses were commonplace took its toll on me. I quickly became the “angry kid with a chip on his shoulder.” I developed a thick-skinned exterior that I carefully crafted to protect myself.