A letter from a reader of Watching the Tree Limbs and Wishing on Dandelions:
***
I read both of the books in one day – and I’ve passed them around to some people I knew they would help. I found them in my local library, and while books about sexual abuse are hard to read, I’m at the stage of recovery where I find it helpful.
I’m hanging on to them for when my nieces get into recovery, too – the oldest one is 9 and her parents believe that counseling is of satan….sigh. No one in the family will help her – they have a long and illustrious history of covering up, denying, pretending it will go away, and when all else fails, blaming the victim for not having enough faith to get over it. Never mind that her abuser is in jail for 15 years and the courts keep telling the parents to get her into counseling….
I oh so vividly remember telling my mother (I was 5.5yo, and at that point it had been going on for almost 2 years, and I was desperate to make it stop.) Every time I told her “Mommy, they make me take off my clothes and do x, y,z and I don’t like it” she responded with “Ok. I won’t spank you this time, but go and pray and ask Jesus to help you not
be a bad little girl anymore.”
be a bad little girl anymore.”
ummm….yeah…..needless to say, it’s taken years of therapy with a trusted counselor, and 10 years of marriage to a wonderfully understanding husband, to start to feel whole again.
***
I don’t know about you, but I can’t read about her mother’s reaction without feeling sick to my stomach. I hate sexual abuse. Hate it. I wish I could wave a magic wand and be done with it forever.
0 Comments