It was never my intent to have others read the letters I wrote to my dead brother or hear about the intimate details of my life. There are many tears and lots of remembered laughter on these pages. But writing this book has allowed me to regain my self-worth and helped promote my adult independence. My children suggested that other people may be able to relate to my experience. And so, here it is: my life on paper; please be gentle as you read, for it is my whole soul you are seeing. My kids were right; almost every adult alive has a story to tell about the family they grew up in. I am not so different from any one reading this. After six years of writing things down and mulling things out in my own way, I decided it was time to share my story, in hopes that others could relate. I am somewhat amazed because it is working. The people who have read my story seem to want to tell me their stories. I am learning new things about people I have known for decades. I am also learning that talking about it seems to help both them and me. I truly hope you find in my story a way to understand your own story.