LIFE TRANSFORMATION
Once the plane landed, the excitement
and happiness was quickly eliminated
from the picture and the fairy tale that we
all know so well—“Cinderella”—became a
reality in my life. I was made to clean the
house all by myself even though I had a
stepbrother and sister who are 5 years
older than me; when my siblings were
allowed to ask for new things or decide
what they wanted to eat, I had no say in
anything, and if I dared to retaliate, my
body would soon be incapable to do the
house chores due to the mistreatment I
received.
The constant physical abuse towards me
became a daily thing; from objects being
thrown to being pushed down the stairs,
the pain and anguish I felt was stored
within my heart, and as the years went by,
so did the rage inside of me.
“Cinder-fella”
I met my second family—“my friends”—,
the only ones that gave me attention,
I remember many times sitting by the
window in my room looking to the sky
crying and asking, “Why me, what have I
done?” But I just could not understand.
listened and showed me respect… all the
things I longed for. They were not the best
role models, but all I wanted was to belong
and that’s what I had with them. At the
end of the school year, reality kicked in. I
left school and didn’t want to participate
in any educational activities but rather get
fast money.
The time had come and starting secondary
school was my ticket to freedom, but with
this freedom came many consequences.
I got involved with robbery. This was due
to the fact that I was not able to get the
things I wanted as a child.
You would think that, from the moment I
got caught, I wouldn’t do it anymore, but
it did not stop me at all. I soon went back
out for more with a gang that I formed.
Our mission was to make money, and fast.
We would rob anyone in our site, whether
they were disabled or not, we had no
sympathy or remorse. At times, we were
so blinded by our anger that we would
throw people out of the bus and make
them go home half naked just for our
entertainment.
STOP SUFFERING|14