It’s Christmas time and I’m scared.
There are no Christmas lights up at my house. There is no tree. There are no presents and there aren’t going to be any.
There’s just me and my mom, only she’s not here most of the time.
I think I remember Christamas lights when I was little but they might have been in a dream. Now my mom is on drugs and most of the time she’s out trying to get drugs or get money to pay for drugs. And when I hear feet steps in the hallway I never know if it’s going to be her or some man hiting the door looking for her.
Sometimes there’s screaming. And I curl up in the corner of my room and press my hands up against my ears so I can’t hear and I try to fall asleep that way.
Don’t ask me what I want for Christmas. I don’t want a truck or a game or a radio. I want to not be scared all the time. I want to be in a place where no one will ever hert me again. I want to have my mom back the way she used to be and if I can’t have that I just want to be around people who care about me.
That’s what I want for Christmas. And if I can’t have that I don’t want anything.
Please note: Because we care deeply about protecting the privacy of our boys and girls, we have changed the name used in this story, as well as certain identifying details.
