‘She pointed to the TV to distract us. We looked back, and she was gone.’ That was the moment I became an adult orphan.’: Woman earns college degree in honor of late mother, jumpstarts grief support groups

“At 9:00 a.m. my sister called with the news. I was at work, in the midst of a project. We hung up and I don’t even remember breathing. ‘I have to leave for a week,’ I told my supervisor. As my sister was driving, the sun was warm in her van. I discovered my chest wasn’t feeling heavy anymore. Inner warmth just filled me. So much was going to change.”

‘I was offered a ‘fashion model’ job. Naive, I took it. It was a false company ran by dead people in other states.’: Human trafficking survivor speaks out, ‘I never thought it would happen to me’

“I was a junior in college who’d just lost my scholarship. I needed money to pay my tuition, so I took the job. I was a small town girl, self-absorbed in my own world. Maybe I was too young, or too naive. I thought it was a ‘black or hispanic problem’ in the urban city. Over the course of a few months, my life came to an abrupt halt. This was anything but a modeling agency.”

‘I feel off. It could be minor. I don’t know. I just know something is off.’ My friend diagnosed me with perimenopause. ‘That’s not what I’m dealing with.’: Woman anxiously awaits results over holidays to see if cancer has returned, ‘We don’t want to worry our kids’

“Christmas feels different this year. I’m having a really hard time getting into the holiday spirit. Hours after getting my pelvic ultrasound done, my phone rang.You never want to hear words like complex, stat, and concern from your doctor. I decided to not tell a soul. I thought I was being brave. I thought I was saving others from getting all worked up. I thought I was being selfless. Ryan and I have been talking about when to tell our kids, or if we even should.”

‘She wanted a dog so bad she couldn’t see straight. So, he got her a fake one. She loved it – for 48 hours.’: Widow recalls touching memory of late husband with daughter on Christmas, ‘This is what grief looks like’

“On Christmas morning, she found her hidden puppy. She loved it like she said she would. For 48 hours. My husband was not a dumb man. He knew he needed to return the $300 robo-pup after she lost interest so quickly, but was still concerned her heart would break if she noticed the canine was gone. So, he did the only thing a sane man could think of. He tore a hole in the side of the box and told her he ran away. He would do anything our sweet daughter wanted him to do. Until he couldn’t any longer.”

‘Christmas came just 3 months after my ex’s death. That’s when they showed up. My in-laws. They rallied together to help our broken family make new, magical memories.’: In-laws rally to provide kids a Christmas after woman’s ex-husband’s suicide

“It was an ‘all hands-on deck’ type of tragedy. My kids were so young. His parents flew us to Florida. My only job was to get on the plane with the kids. There was absolutely no obligation to love on the ‘ex-wife.’ They could have easily blamed me for their son’s downward spiral into suicide. They could have chosen to hate, curse, and isolate me from their family. But they didn’t.”

‘When I’m out with you, I’m all in. I can dance, wine taste, make small talk. But then I’m done. I have an escape plan.’: Woman explains difficulties of being an ‘extroverted introvert’ during the holiday season

“I really like going out and hanging out with people, but it takes me days to recover from it. I need to lay on the couch to recoup from the mental toll it takes. People exhaust me. When my husband drinks, he becomes an energizer bunny. Me? The more I drink, the more tired I become. Once I hit that wall, there is no turning back. I am done-done-done. I can only be social for a set amount of time. If that time is up, I have an escape plan.”

‘Your daughter will never be more than 2 feet tall.’ My husband and I broke down in tears. ‘…If she survives.’: Mom births baby with rare Thanatophoric Dysplasia, ‘I will never give up on her’

“The news broke me and honestly ruined my pregnancy. I prayed our baby girl would grow, that her little chest would expand to survive this birth. I wanted Paisley to have a life, no matter if it was only for a few seconds or a few years. She deserved the world and I was determined to give it to her.”

‘What makes her think I want to have kids? I’m 32!’ Her eyes bugged out at me. That conversation bothered me for the next 3 years.’: Woman declares she doesn’t want children, ‘You can have a satisfying life without kids’

“I grew up going to church 3 times a week. Every Sunday, I saw women with their children. The husbands were usually away working. I heard the word ‘struggle’ more times than I could count. I watched with curious eyes. If this was to be my life as a grownup, forget it. I wanted something different. I no longer worried ‘the right man’ would appear and voila, a baby would follow.”

‘They called her ‘Nurse Betty.’ And she loved it. She wasn’t fancy or educated, but she was fierce.’: Granddaughter pens touching tribute to caregiver grandmother

“She left the hospital at one point to run to Walmart. A nurse had just complimented a pair of sandals she was wearing. It was important that my grandma proceed to Walmart immediately to buy her an identical pair. Then she asked about someone who had recently been admitted in the palliative care floor. ‘That’s just terrible. I hope they’re going to be okay,’ she said. This was 72 hours before she passed away.”

‘Let’s keep walking. I see flashing lights over there!’ We tip toe toward the house, set the bag down, ring the doorbell and spring into the night.’: Mom’s act of kindness tradition with her family spreads holiday cheer to unsuspecting neighbors

“Most nights we’re just trying to survive. We rush around, it’s bedtime, and then poof: we do it all again! But not on this night. As we narrow down the options, that’s when the real fun begins. Lucas is the Doorbell Ringer, because he’s so quick on his feet. I hang in the shadows, proudly watching as my little elves make their special delivery. Sometimes we’re still close enough to see the homeowner open the door, but most years we never see their faces.”

‘I made a mistake. My ex found out. ‘I should’ve known better,’ he said. I thought I deserved it. I wasn’t faithful.’: Woman overcomes abusive relationship to find the man of her dreams, ‘I feel like a damn warrior!’

“He burnt my grandma’s table in a bonfire and emailed me pictures. At 2 a.m., he was yelling outside my house, banging on all the doors and windows. I was hidden behind the couch dialing 911. He keyed my car. I woke up with 100+ missed calls. My family finally convinced me the police needed to be involved. I brought so much proof, I thought they’d have to arrest him, but nope. Their ‘hands were tied’ and ‘boys will be boys.’”

‘Let’s do it!’ We sat on the hotel floor with this sweet, innocent baby. We had 24 hours to back out.’: Couple adopt special needs baby in time for Christmas after grueling journey, ‘I would do it all again in a heartbeat!’

“They kept this little boy in a room by himself, afraid he would scare the other children. He was not allowed to play, or go outside. It was so heartbreaking. When we finally met him, he was more severely delayed than we knew. He couldn’t barely hold his head up, sit, or stand. It was scary. We held each other and just cried. We had no idea how we were going to handle this.”

‘Mom! You’re never going to believe this!’ She knelt beside me. ‘What is it, darlin’?’ I led her to the tree. ‘Look, momma!’ She saw it too.’: Woman reminds us to keep holiday magic alive, even when we’re ‘tired, on 4 hours of sleep’

“Our teacher tasked us with making little wreaths out of mini pretzels. We worked hard on those. I reached in to grab it, and instinctively knew something was wrong. My heart sank. My little eyes filled with tears. My mom said she loved it anyway. I cried myself to sleep, waking the next morning to sounds of Christmas carols from the kitchen. I shuffled towards the Christmas tree. Was it real? Could it be? I ran to the kitchen, tugged on her pants. ‘Well, look at that,’ she gasped, just as surprised as me.”

‘My son chooses to wear makeup, dresses. ‘But…what if he catches The Gay?’ Well, then I’ll have a gay son. Simple as that. It’s a non-issue.’: Mom embraces son’s fluid gender expression, ‘It’s their body, their choice’

“My son has had autonomy since he was a toddler. As he grows, he makes as many decisions about his own body as possible. Our only limits are safety and hygiene. We often hear, ‘…But..but…but…it’s PINK!’ ‘Why don’t you just cut your hair like a boy?!’ ‘That’s for girls, you don’t want that!’ He informs them with absolute integrity, ‘No, it’s for PEOPLE!’”

‘Were you in a fire?’ ‘Did someone beat you?’ ‘No one will ever want to date you!’ It was cruel adults asking, not curious children.’: Woman born with Port Wine Stain views it as a ‘blessing’ to filter out ‘shallow, undeserving people’ from her life

“When I met my husband, he was unlike any other guy. He looked past my exterior and into my soul. He truly wanted to get to know me. He was attracted to my confidence despite of looking different. ‘I never see your birthmark,’ he always says. He never made me feel insecure like so many guys in the past. So many broke my heart, used me, kept me a secret, disrespected and took advantage of me. He never made me feel like I had to change who I was.”

‘A strong feeling hit me. I’d be coming back to the cemetery very soon, and it was going to be for someone close to me.’: Woman loses husband in car accident after receiving ‘premonitions’

“Held captive by the foreboding feelings of the day and these two men, a sick feeling began to vibrate throughout my entire body. The look on their faces was weird. Something was wrong. A strange electric sensation came over me. It was as if each cell was acknowledging the arrival of my biggest fear, one… by… one.”

‘My son was 6 and my daughter was 3. Where do I go for guidance? I opened up to my best friend about divorcing my husband of 11 years.’: Mother of two finds strength in sharing divorce journey

“What I do feel is an inner peace, an inner confidence and happiness from within. I have grown so close to my kids and they continue to push me to be the best person I can be. I look into my son’s eyes and I push myself to show him a confident, independent woman who deserves respect. I look into my daughter’s eyes and I strive to be the example of a woman paving the path of ‘doing it all’ while still expressing her emotions. It is so important to me to continue to build myself up and keep my children’s environment stable, healthy, and consistent.”