From the beginning ~

Welcome to E.J.'s journey! 

For six years my message was clear "I was going to leave Florida and when I did I would not have to come back and that I would go to Texas, but not to Dallas where I had gone to high school"  Well I had no idea what that meant as all of my family is in Florida.  Not until the end of 2011 did the pieces start coming together. 

My family is not a close one as many families are not that is not a new story by any means.  I woke up on the 19th of Nov. in 2011 at 5am and thought oh no, by 6:30am I was crying but the call did not come until 8:30am.  My little brother had an accident and broke his neck, he fell at 5am that morning.  I packed a bag and took off to go to where they live.  Come to find out he had been sick with MRSA for over a year, he has a teenage son and it is just the two of them.  It was touch and go that week and at the end of week my other brother thought he should throw me around a little which was normal behavior.  I was not surprised as I said "normal" for my family and others.  So the next morning my mother asked me to leave which I did, I ran back to my safe haven on the other side of the state.

Two weeks later I had my answer to the first part of my message as to leaving Florida and not having to come back.  My mother called and she said that she appreciated what I had been trying to do, (fundraiser, getting new appliances for my brothers house etc.) however they did not "want" me or "need" me!  I do not think she understood what she was doing at the moment but it was not lost on me, I was grinning from ear to ear!  I knew what this meant she had set me free, completely free once and for all!   I suppose I should have been hurt as that would be the natural reaction but I knew the real meaning for me and that was all I needed.  I rented out my house and stayed with my Aunt for a couple of months and then hit the road bound for Texas and the next clue in my journey.  I crossed the Texas state line on my birthday February 9th, 2012, I just turned 51 years old and so it begins.

Ciao for now ~