InnerSelf.com

Making a loaf of Sabbath bread on Friday morning was my grandmother's favorite teaching tool. As she kneaded the dough, she said, "This is what the world does to you sometimes. It stretches you, and pushes you around, and..."

I was sexually abused - for 8 years. By my brother. There it is, out in in the open for everyone to know. No lies, no stories, just the truth and me. I am tired of secrets and hush hushes behind the door. It happens, and no one wants to talk to about it.

I remember feeling unloved, under-appreciated, ignored, and lonely. Lonelier than I ever thought imaginable. I think the feelings were heightened because I wasn't supposed to be feeling them. I was married. These types of feelings aren't typically...

Once upon a time, there was a young woman who gave and gave to other people until it hurt. She cooked for people, always threw parties or gave presents to friends on their birthdays, bought expensive clothes for her boyfriend, and generally bent over backwards to help anyone she cared about (or didn't care about). It pleased her no end to buy something special for a friend, even when she really needed some...