From the Pit to the Palace

He would leave the home and stay gone a lot at night. He joined a gang in the process of running from abuse by my father's hand. My mom convinced my brother to join a job corporation in Texas. On this night the gang members came looking for my brother. The driveway was filled with glass and youth with bats trying to kill my brother. So, he never returns, even when he calls, my mom would ignore his calls or tell him she could not talk to him while my dad was in the home. She did this to my brother for 10 years. My brother finally came home for my 9th grade year. She would still not let him visit her, so he ended up going back to Texas. My mom stated that he had to leave because my dad was on the way home. Three Children of War As my middle sister got older, she began to take my mother's place in the kitchen. Cleaning up the home and massaging my dad's feet and legs. She was necessary when my dad was upset at my mom. My mom used her to keep the peace in the house. She would take care of me when my mom was beat up or just came home from work. She walked us to school. She also disciplined us for not cleaning the home. By the time she made it to tenth grade she decided to wear lipstick. When my dad saw her lipstick, he was enraged with anger. He jumped on my sister that day after we came from church. The fight was so bad she left to live with her older sister.