We had nowhere to go until Mrs. Angela Ruiz, a retired teacher who lived down the street, opened her door and let us stay in her spare room. Two weeks later we moved to Tacoma, Washington, into a tiny studio above a laundromat that smelled like bleach and survival.
Three days after I left, my father sent me certified documents stating I forfeited all inheritance and that the family had no obligation to me or any dependent I might have. I kept that document because it was proof of exactly who they chose to be.
My daughter Sophie was born on July sixth, 2005 at Rainier Medical Center in Tacoma, and she came into the world screaming with life and strength. I held her and promised myself she would never feel small the way I had.
The early years were hard and messy and full of exhaustion, but we managed because Jordan worked nonstop and I studied whenever I could. We lived on cheap food and patched clothes, but there was love in that small space and that mattered more than anything else.