BREAKING FREE

BREAKING FREE

“ Gbim, Gbim, Gbim” the resounding noise of his pounding on the door filled the entire house. “ Mary, Mary” he thundered my name, as he banged consistently on the locked door which shuddered at every pound.

Oh my goodness, what kind of mess have I gotten myself into???. I recall my parent`s warning about letting go of him, but my blood was hot and I was ready to cross the seven seas just to be with my love.That was a year and six months ago, my blood runs dead cold now and my decision continued to haunt me. Its being over a year of living in misery and running  from a life I didn’t want to live again. Ever since I went against my parents and moved in with the supposed “ LOVE OF MY LIFE”, my life has lacked a bright moment.

When I moved in at first, I felt as free as a bird, I felt I was living a beautiful dream come true. I stayed on with the silly hope that my parents and friends would understand that he loves me so much and then we would get married and live happily ever after, just like the fairy tales. But now, it’s a different view. I wouldn’t wish him on someone mad.

The first time he hit me, I felt he was under stress, or probably I did something wrong, or maybe I wasn’t looking sexy enough for him. I convinced myself that his hitting me was all my fault and no one  else`s. So I set out to starve myself in the name of dieting to give that sexy look, and I would spend hours at my mirror, painting my face just to look like a doll for him.

But still, yet still, the beatings got worse, sometimes he`d hit me with anything in sight and I would have a swollen face for sometimes more than a month. I was dying in silence and I couldn’t reach out to my parents, because fear held me back and I refused to accept that I was in the wrong, couldn’t speak to friends because they never liked him from the beginning. I was there, wallowing in self pity and misery, until I stumbled upon a book that changed me.

Jesus used to be a foreigner to me, heard about him in church on Sundays, about all the cool things he did. He was distant to me, someone I wouldn’t know but eventually I did. He became a good friend, we spoke frequently like everyday, and I could feel my glow coming back to me. I received so much from him and one  day I mustered courage to confront a monster  that sought to snatch life from me.

The first day I raised my hand to stop him, he was astounded, couldn’t believe his punching bag was standing up to him. But being the man that he was, he overpowered me and hit me again. I passed out and when I got myself again. It began on me that it would take a lot more to help him. I didn’t have access to the outside world but I would find a way, and find a way I did.

I was able to get through to a help line for domestic violence. The day they came to take him away to  help, I cried not because I felt I betrayed him, but I cried because he became a workshop for the devil. I reconnected to reality, and decided to help other ladies suffering from domestic violence speak out, and chase out the devil in our men.

Therefore I present to you all “ RENEWING LIFE FOUNDATION”. We cant and we wont keep quiet anymore. It’s the era of “ CHANGE”. Those were my last words on the podium as I stepped down to embrace my parents and friends admist tears of joy and relief, with a grateful heart to God for the privilege to know him, win this battle and actually be someone useful.

#SAYNOTODOMESTICVIOLENCE