Three Women Who Have Greatly Impacted My Life

When I first started writing this post, I got stuck. There have been so many women who have deeply impacted my life and my way of thinking. My mom has dealt with 16 years of living with me, and my grammy has dealt with it for the last 6 months. My godmother has taken me to recovery, and my recovery leader has gotten me through some really rough nights. My sister, Ryan, has let me vent to her and cry when I need to, and she always pushes me to do what makes me happy- except if what makes me happy is stealing her clothes. And those are just small examples of what some of the women have done for me in my life. I could easily go on for hours about my women who have made me who I am but that would be a book and not a blog post. So, I have narrowed it down to three women who have gone above and beyond for my health and my safety and my wellbeing.

#3- My recovery leader

I started going to celebrate recovery on Tuesday nights a little over a year ago. I went for about 8 months, but I had to stop because I moved in with my grandparents. For the sake of anonymity, I’ll call her Cristina (because Cristina was my favorite Grey’s anatomy character) I have called this lady in the middle of the night time after time. Cristina gave me a safe space to rant about whatever I needed to and she has prayed for me countless times. She always picked me up from my house for recovery and we’d go get sonic, and on the way home, some of my recovery friends and I would play our favorite songs and scream them very loudly. And, Cristina just let jam out in the back seat. Cristina, if you are reading, I miss seeing you and I love you and I hope you’re doing well.

#2- My godmother

My godmother, Trista, has made my life so much more interesting. She has taught me the importance of finding my people. I can’t count the number of times we went to Surfside Beach with her sister and my sister on a whim. I can’t count the number of times we’ve gotten snow cones from our favorite snow cone place. I can’t count the number of nights I spent at her house just hanging out. She has given me so much. She gave me my recovery bible, a lot of washi tape, my favorite perfume, and so many energy drinks. But she hasn’t only given me physical things, she’s given me love, friendship, and a lot of her time. Below I have attached a picture of some of my people. In the back seat from left to right, there is Ryan, Leanne, and Jordan. And I am in the front left, and Trista is in the front right.

Trista, I love you. Thank you so much for all you’ve done for me.

Before we get to the number one spot, here are some honorable mentions.

My nana- I love this lady so much and we share a lot of the same things- the love of chocolate, olive garden, and thrift shopping.

My old youth pastor's wife- Sierra has given me so much valuable advice and so many hugs. Sierra, I hope to see you again soon!

My sister- we have so many inside jokes and so much fun every time we see each other. If there was a fourth person on my list, it would be her.

My grammy- I have lived with my grammy for the last six months and she has been over the top kind and helpful to me.

Mrs. Kelley- She is the freshmen English teacher and newspaper sponsor at the high school I used to go to. She taught me the love of writing and is the sweetest banana pancake on the planet.

Last but not least, My mother, of course.

This woman has birthed me and raised me. She has had a bigger impact on my life than any man or woman. She taught me how to shave, how to cook, the value of money, and those are just some examples. I cannot express my gratitude for her patience and kindness. I can not even fathom the amount of stress she is constantly under, trying to turn five sloppy, lazy, annoying children into functioning members of society- I mean I obviously started out pretty great so I wasn’t very difficult. That was a joke, but seriously my mother is a saint. She does so much for me and I love her so much.