05/23/2025
â ď¸ Trigger warningâ ď¸
Domestic violence isnât just between lovers. Itâs between anyone in a close relationshipâparent and child, siblings, caretakers, partners. Itâs not about who you are to each other. Itâs about who holds the power⌠and how they use it.
I grew up on a place folks around town called M**h Mountain. That nickname wasnât cleverâit was accurate.
It meant neighbors whispered about bruises. Mothers flinched when you looked them in the eye. Children learned early how to read a room and stay silent.
In my own home, the abuse wore a different mask. Psychological warfare. Gaslighting. Manipulation. Raised voices that left me trembling.
But I want to be clearâit didnât stop there.
There were times when fists were raised along with the voices, and I stepped between adults and children more than once to deescalate situations.
I remember a momentâclear as dayâpressed against a closed door, a steak knife at my throat. A family memberâs hand holding it steady while I froze, pulse thundering. âHurts, doesnât it?â She snarled through clenched teeth.
I remember the glint of the blade. The pressure.
That was domestic violence.
Not the kind thatâs easy to spot from the outside.
But real. Terrifying. Life-altering.
And Iâm telling this storyânot because I want pityâbut because I made a decision:
So that what?
Thatâs the question the upcoming book A Shadow Called Sunshine by Nicole Cherie Hesse dares you to ask.
You left.
You survived.
So that what?
That question cracked me open.
Rising from victim⌠to survivor⌠to something more.
To a legacy.
To a voice.
To someone who gets to choose now.
I joined this movement to be a voice for the ones still trembling, still trapped, still hoping someone will see.
Iâm not just surviving anymore.
Iâm standing.
Iâm speaking.
And Iâm building something betterâfor me, for my children, for every quiet heart whoâs ever wondered if theyâd make it out alive.