Speak Up and Reach Out: Ending the Cycle of Domestic Abuse
From A Sister's Standpoint:
I view a sister as a God given best friend, through thick and thin you can always count on your sister to be there. I am three years older than my little sister. I have always taken it upon myself to look out for her and make sure she is safe and months ago when she gave birth to the happiest baby girl in the world I took it upon myself to always make sure she is safe as well. Here is my sister’s story told from my perspective…
On a brisk Thursday morning on October 25th, 2012 my sister received a an early morning text message. It was from her boyfriend and the father of her baby, he had asked her to come outside because he had some of their daughter’s things to give to her. Not thinking anything of it she went outside to meet him. He asked her a random question that threw her off guard then began to beat her brutally. She struggled to make her way to the front door and locked herself inside. After that she was completely shaken up and didn’t know what to do, so she covered the black eye that was already showing with pounds of makeup and went to work.
My sister tried to hide the fact that she had been badly beaten just a couple of hours ago but after a while my mom started to question her eye. She told my mom a lie because she didn’t know what else to say. Sisters have an odd connection. When someone hurts my sister, whether it is physical or emotional, I care for her so much that I can feel her pain. When I heard the story I questioned it right away, something just didn’t add up and didn’t feel right.
A little later my sister’s serious concussion was limiting her work ability. She had to tell my mom the truth and after she did she was then rushed to the hospital. Her head reminded me of something I would have seen on a cartoon show, she had many lumps popping out different directions. The hospital wanted to take an x-ray but couldn’t because her brain was too swollen and it would only harm her more. She was put on strong medicine to help numb her from all of the physical pain she was in.
The next couple days were a whirlwind with police officers and attorneys stopping by our home. My sister’s eye became worse and worse as the days went on sadly becoming the best black eye I have ever seen in person. I slept next to her every night because she didn’t feel safe. This event took my sister who is the strongest person I know and broke her down.
This experience changed my life completely. It has been one of the hardest things my family has ever had to work though. I guess I underestimated how something like this could honestly affect an entire family in different ways. I am dedicating my life to supporting other women and families who have suffered from domestic violence. No one deserves to go through what my sister has… NO ONE!
I view a sister as a God given best friend, through thick and thin you can always count on your sister to be there. I am three years older than my little sister. I have always taken it upon myself to look out for her and make sure she is safe and months ago when she gave birth to the happiest baby girl in the world I took it upon myself to always make sure she is safe as well. Here is my sister’s story told from my perspective…
On a brisk Thursday morning on October 25th, 2012 my sister received a an early morning text message. It was from her boyfriend and the father of her baby, he had asked her to come outside because he had some of their daughter’s things to give to her. Not thinking anything of it she went outside to meet him. He asked her a random question that threw her off guard then began to beat her brutally. She struggled to make her way to the front door and locked herself inside. After that she was completely shaken up and didn’t know what to do, so she covered the black eye that was already showing with pounds of makeup and went to work.
My sister tried to hide the fact that she had been badly beaten just a couple of hours ago but after a while my mom started to question her eye. She told my mom a lie because she didn’t know what else to say. Sisters have an odd connection. When someone hurts my sister, whether it is physical or emotional, I care for her so much that I can feel her pain. When I heard the story I questioned it right away, something just didn’t add up and didn’t feel right.
A little later my sister’s serious concussion was limiting her work ability. She had to tell my mom the truth and after she did she was then rushed to the hospital. Her head reminded me of something I would have seen on a cartoon show, she had many lumps popping out different directions. The hospital wanted to take an x-ray but couldn’t because her brain was too swollen and it would only harm her more. She was put on strong medicine to help numb her from all of the physical pain she was in.
The next couple days were a whirlwind with police officers and attorneys stopping by our home. My sister’s eye became worse and worse as the days went on sadly becoming the best black eye I have ever seen in person. I slept next to her every night because she didn’t feel safe. This event took my sister who is the strongest person I know and broke her down.
This experience changed my life completely. It has been one of the hardest things my family has ever had to work though. I guess I underestimated how something like this could honestly affect an entire family in different ways. I am dedicating my life to supporting other women and families who have suffered from domestic violence. No one deserves to go through what my sister has… NO ONE!