Introduction of the Memoir

Perhaps courage has led me here. Perhaps cowardice has pushed me into the shadow lands. Whatever it may be, it has led me here. This is where I will give an accounting of my year advocating alone for my daughters. At this time, I do not feel safe telling my story with my name attached. Some will figure it out, some will already know. There is a lot I want to tell the world, to teach other parents, but I continue to worry about the backlash of the surrounding community. For months I have wondered how to share our story. I'm going to tell it here, in the form of an Anonymous Memoir. A Memoir is MY accounting, my own memories. Some may be precise and others may be warped with the passage of time. I do promise to give you the best of recollective skills, whatever is left of them.

This is the account of a mom battling an educational system for her two blind daughters. There were wins and there were losses. There were an astounding number of mistakes and just as many lessons learned. We started in a side room, unventilated in the heat of summer and ended in a general education classroom with a co-teacher who believes in the capability of my daughters.

This is a memoir of one mom refusing to accept stereotypes, believing her daughters are capable of achieving great things. This is the story of adoption. This is the story of us.