Tammy Martin
Professor Tomb
English 001A
09/20/2013
Silence Equals Death
11 “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11. This verse would carry me like how a mother carries her young to safety and warmth, I just didn’t know it, yet. But how could I when just a year ago I was this beaten down woman, mother of two with no hope or thought of a future without sorrow. I lived in religious oppression telling myself not to be me, not to be free and to stay in this broken marriage at all costs including if that cost was myself. I had been married now for fifteen years, so many of those years I spent on my knees at an alter praying for change, a change in me, a change in him or a change in us. I started going to church when I was twelve years old, very young and already full of anger and abuse. My parents divorced, father remarried to a wonderful woman but my mother’s relationship brought abuse and pain into my world. That would be the beginning of myself making excuses for abuse. As I started on my path to womanhood I would learn what things were allowed to be talked about and what was completely off the table for discussion. Those lessons continued after marrying a Pastor’s son full of rage and secrets. My own values and ideas I learned to file away like last year’s taxes. But I was in the process of a new hope and a new future and it was just around the corner.
I was offered a position at this great company and with that came a way out of my darkness. I started working and meeting new people. This absolutely intelligent, extremely shy woman walked into my world at this time in my life. We worked on similar projects that shared like parts, so we often found ourselves working together and with that a friendship started to bloom. This friendship bloomed with a beautiful fragrance like the flowers in the springtime. Like spring, new life was born into...