Thursday, October 17, 2013

tell someone.


i'm still stuck on the soundtrack for the cory monteith memorial episode of glee.  and this song, man, it's always been a favorite of mine.  in fact, shakira's version of it, from the hope from haiti benefit concert a few years ago, is my absolute favorite version of the song.  but amber riley, she killed it for sure.  she has such a beautiful voice, and i think that this song was an excellent choice for the episode.

y'all know by now that my sisters and i are incredibly close.  we have our own lives, but we always band together when one of us is hurting.  (and the other two of us usually want to take a sledgehammer to whoever made the third hurt.  but that's a story for another day.)  recently, my baby sister, corinne, has been dealing with some heavy stuff.  things you never imagine will occur in your family, much less to one of the two people you love more than life.

it's my sisters' story to tell, which she has on several occasions, but i will say that a real man will never, EVER raise his hand to a woman, no matter what the circumstances are.  the men who do, are cowards, who have to use their physical strength to try and control the one they "love".  it's disgusting.

this is a subject that leaves me at a loss for words.  the abuse i endured during my marriage, and the abuse my sister has endured, they don't make sense to me.  my brain cannot wrap around the concepts.  my parents raised me to be kind and respectful of other people, and being around people who are not like that makes me very uncomfortable.  but this, this is a whole other level.

i guess all i can really say now, is that if you know or suspect anyone who may be experiencing abuse (physical, emotional, verbal, etc.), say something.  tell someone.  call The National Domestic Violence Hotline.  you could save a life, you could give someone the strength to walk away.

when you do realize that someone you love is being abused, and they decide to get help, be there to support them.  i will do anything for my sisters.  the most important thing i can do is listen, and be here.  and that's what i have been doing and will continue to do.  no matter what happens, no matter the outcome of my sister's story, i will stand by her.  she is strong, and together we are stronger.

EDIT:  i should also say that the abuser doesn't always get the justice they deserve.  sometimes they get away with it.  and that makes it even harder on the abused and their loved ones.  but the more that we talk about the topic, and the more that we make it clear that we will not stand for domestic violence, then maybe things will change.  maybe people will start to raise their children to be respectful of others, maybe we'll get help for abusers before they get to a point of no return, and maybe no one will ever have to feel that kind of pain and betrayal again. 

i'm so proud of my sister for being so strong in the face of a boy and his friends who would do anything to break her.  their words are only words, and they know what he did.  not once, not twice, but multiple times.  i sincerely hope that none of them ever have to experience what it's like to have a loved one hurt in such a way, and that they open their eyes to the truth.  my sister will not continue to be broken down by such fools, and i'm proud of her for the steps that she's taken to protect and heal herself.  she's a role model for anyone who was ever too scared to tell the truth.

(love you to pieces, baby sis)

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