MELANIE's TestimonyMELANIE> HELLO FROM MELANIE> > 'I am blessed to have Hepatitis-C' > > With this being my first open email letter, let me introduce myself. > I'm a friend of internet Dave who goes by NiteOwlDave on Paltalk and > Heaven_Yes2001 on Yahoo chat. > My name is Melanie. I'm 44. I live in Florida. I am the blessed > recipient of Hepatitis-C, an extremely invasive virus that primarily attacks the > liver. Yes, you read correctly - I'm "blessed." I'll explain why later. > I grew up here in Florida. My mother and father basically hated each > other, I have one natural brother, Mike. My dad was transferred a lot. My mother > now tells me he was "fired" a lot. Not a big surprise there. > We moved from a pretty cool house in Clearwater, Florida, when I was > about age four to a miserable house in Tennessee. My dad had four sons from a > previous marriage, two of which came to live with us in TN. > ABUSED AS A CHILD > It was not more than a month after they arrived that I became their > "prey," literally. I will spare you the details. > We ended up moving back to Florida because my dad got another > "transfer." We moved to a house that was to become my Hell. > A very short time after moving, my dad's other two sons came to live > with us. Oh joy! > One of my abuser half brothers left for Vietnam. I was overjoyed. What > a mistake. One of the new stepbrothers just took his place. This went on for > several years until I finally got the courage to tell my parents what I had to > endure. > My mother took my side. My father called me a liar and beat me > repeatedly. Fortunately my parents were getting a divorce, and my brothers were sent > packing along with my father. > But I digress. I must mention that my "brothers" introduced me to the > wonderful world of drugs - cocaine, heroin dilaudid, reefers, etc. Under the > influence of their drugs, I wouldn't resist their advances. > DRUG ADDICT AT AGE EIGHT > They turned me into a full-blown dope addict at the ripe old age of > eight years of age. My life after that centered around drugs, sex, and some of > the best scams going. > I quit school in the ninth grade because I could not keep up being the > merry little student and a rebellious, druggie runaway. > I have lived in homes owned by the mafia. I have lived in many motels. > For 15 years, I lived in my mother's house, which she gave me. She sold what > was left of it when I got busted and went to jail. > About the only time I didn't do drugs was when I was pregnant. I was > married three times and had three children. Each marriage featured drug usage > and each was a disaster. My last husband died at Christmas of cancer. > DAUGHTER DIES > My first daughter died at two months, supposedly of crib death. I know > differently. The autopsy showed she had choked to death on her medicine. The > daycare operator was not charged but her daycare license was permanently > revoked. Justification? Not really. But I have forgiven her. > So what and how am I doing now? I am a grateful and blessed recovering > cocaine and heroin junkie. I was a user for 27-years. I am completely starting > over after being arrested May 19, 2005, for possession of heroin. > GETTING BUSTED PROMPTS TURN-AROUND > Getting busted was the best thing that happened to me. I hit rock > bottom, having lost husbands, my house of 15 years, my three cats which were put to > sleep, all my belongings which were trashed and stolen by the very people > that I supported over the years - my fellow drug dealers - and my health. > Before I was arrested, I had been diagnosed with the worst strain > possible of Hep-C, geno type 1. I have been given a 30 per cent chance that the > treatment that I have just started taking will help. The medical people suggest > I contracted Hep-C in 1987 from tainted blood given to me during an operation. > GOD HAS BETTER PLANS > God laid His hand on me this past May when I spent 29 days in jail, and > 60 days in extensive drug rehabiitation. > It was at this point that I realized I could not blame God and others > for my mess-ups in life. I forgave others and myself. I gave up, I turned my > life back over to Jesus Christ. > I repented FULLY of all my sins. I held nothing back. I realized I was > not responsible for the actions of my stepbrothers when I was young. But it > was not God's fault, either. There are powers of Satan at work on this earth. > I was one of his victims. No longer, though. All those years I didn't think > I was worthy of being one of God's children. > I had wanted to die and I almost succeeded A recluse in my bedroom, I > had placed a 9 mm gun in my mouth many times. God intervenes in mysterious ways! > It's a rush to be winning a life-long dependency on drugs. But it's more > important to find your way to Jesus Christ and His salvation. > TOUGH ROAD AHEAD > I now live with my mother. Yes, I said my mother. God Bless her always. > For the next 48 weeks, I have to inject myself with Interferon. This stuff is > liquid fire. I also take 80 pills a week. The side effects are devastating, > to say the least - headaches, nausea, vomiting, hair loss, depression, extreme > joint pain, and flu symptoms. I'm as sick as a dog every day. > If the drugs work, I might add an additional five years to my 5-10 year > life expectancy. If the drugs don't do the job, I have maybe five or ten years > to live. > But guess what? I am happier now than I have been in so many years I > can't remember. Happy? You betcha!!! > MY CHILDREN NOW LOVE ME > My two beautiful daughters, Cory, 21, and Kathryn, 18, actually come to > see me now. They even hug and kiss me and tell me they "love" me. They are no > longer ashamed of their mother. > My oldest lets me baby-sit my granddaughter, April, two, all by myself. > I have gained such closeness with my mother, daughters, and granddaughter. > There are no words to describe it. And my relationship with the Lord is > incredible. > I take comfort in my Lord Jesus Christ. He is always with me, no matter > what. I have gained so much mental and physical wealth. There is nothing that > can compare to it, ever. The respect that I have with family, friends, and > even strangers is priceless. > Where am I going with all this? Let go of what you think is important > and let God show you what is important. > As the saying goes: "Take the cotton out of our ears, place it in our > mouths and LISTEN." > > I'd love to hear from any of you. I'm at http://by113fd.bay113.hotmail.msn.com/cgi-bin/compose?curmbox=00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000001&a=7bc4d6e664b363b5d2dee422b67d83932290ad13e16e5be23ccba536364447bb&mailto=1&to=SalvashunsMine@aol.com&msg=FCABC5BD-0300-4C93-9DE6-18831E301C96&start=0&len=9402&src=&type=x. Want > an internet chat friend? I may be sick, but I love to write e-mails and chat on > Paltalk (www.paltalk..com). > Love, > Melanie http://by113fd.bay113.hotmail.msn.com/cgi-bin/compose?curmbox=00000000 |
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