In my line of work one thing I do a lot of is reading. Today I read something that made an impact on my day. In the essay I was reading the applicant stressed the need for parents to share with their daughters how important their bodies are. She urged parents to help them understand that their bodies belong to them and that no one should abuse it in any way. She began the essay with the question, what is rape? I knew I was in for more than I bargained for from that point.
You all know I have a soft spot for women in general. No woman should ever be harmed in my opinion. When a little girl is taken advantage of, my soft spot gets filled with rage. The rage comes because whenever I speak to, look at or listen to any young lady all I hear or see is C.J. I just do not see how anyone could every even contemplate laying a hand or inflicting any type of pain upon a young child in a vulgar manner. As you may have already figured out the essay went on to announce the worse, that indeed the applicant had been a victim of rape.
Immediately my heart sank. I hurt so much that I needed to take a break from reading. I looked over at my shrine of C.J. and could only shake my head. How could someone be so cruel? Why did this young lady have to go through this? How has this affected her progress? How does she view herself now? All of these questions ran through my head. Soon a spark of light entered my mind. This young lady's grades were stellar. This young lady was able to stare her experience in the face and gain strength from it. She had taken the initiative to be an ambassador of education to parents on how to educate their children about themselves. This young lady is one who does not make excuses but makes examples for others to follow. I quickly referenced the poem from yesterday and this is a young lady of strength.
So I plan to follow her suggestion and when the time comes I plan to educate C.J. about herself and her body. I never learned a lesson from a prospective student applying to college before but today that essay changed my life. I ask that as we remember to pray we include this young lady and any other victims of sexual abuse in our prayers because we know that prayer changes things.
