My story isn’t special in the sense that it’s unique to only me. In fact at the time of writing this, there are nearly 15,000 children in CPS custody in Texas. Most of them are in foster homes. Nationwide, roughly 391,098 children are in the system (2021). What I can say is I am brave enough to step up and share it. One thing I have learned on my path of life is developing the courage to walk with fear. And in order to make massive change, have massive impact you must show up in a massive way. You get to decide you’re a big deal and bring awareness to big issues. Since we were little we were taught how to “survive”. Especially as women, which has led to all kinds of challenges later on. Abusive relationships, body image disorders and unresolved traumas that we unknowingly pass down to our children, the next generation. Generational trauma has become a common phrase being thrown around the self development world but being aware of what traumas are coded in our DNA and what traumas we have that are unresolved, is the key to a life that we genuinely are thriving in. To thrive is not something we were ever taught because we were too busy learning how to survive. Because that’s how those who came before us did it. The purpose of this memoir is to share my journey of child abuse, foster care and entrepreneurship - bring awareness to the system in an effort to begin the education process required to end this systemic cycle within our communities. I truly believe we are here to fully own our talents, step into our alignment and stand proud in our stories. By owning who we are fully, we can “clean up our side of the street” and as a result make this collective a better space to live and evolve. Welcome to my world.