One Small Gesture

​Some days are just more exhausting than others.

​Recently, I have been wandering a bit in this space of trying to truly understand what God's plan is for me. I thought I knew a few months ago, but that dream was destroyed.

​I should have known better, honestly. The idea required others to be built, and if I have learned anything in the last six years, it is that people will always disappoint you. It is easy for someone to make a promise or say something out of fear. But when push comes to shove, most people do not have what it takes to do what I need to do.

​It is not that I am superior by any means. It’s just that I am willing to sacrifice whatever it takes to ensure that I leave this plane better than I found it.

​This week has been one of those weeks where that weight felt incredibly heavy.

​Then this evening, during my second session with my newest client, everything shifted. They walked in and presented me with two stickers and a bracelet.

​My heart sank straight into my chest.

​The simple gesture meant the absolute world to me. This little one has already lost so much in their life, including both of their parents. They do not have much, but they gifted me a small token of appreciation from the very little they had.

​I needed that reminder of why the work I am doing is so important. So necessary.

​It is worth sacrificing whatever I need to, just to ensure that cycles are broken and that this world will be slightly better than how I found it.

​Thankfully, that mission starts at home first. I am solely focused on breaking the cycle for my own children—attempting with all my strength to ensure that their story is not a repeat of their father's.

​So far, so good. I have managed to ensure that they have only experienced two ACEs out of the ten.

​What are ACEs? ACEs refer to Adverse Childhood Experiences. They are the reason I ended up doing this work in the first place.

But that is a story for another time.

​For now, my gratitude is at its brim. Despite the exhausting weeks and the broken dreams, I know without a doubt that this is exactly what I am supposed to be doing.