My Little Friend

On the RWRS shoot March 4, 2017

There was a mentally disabled boy in the network, whose innocence was unaffected by the abuse. On the set of shoot in New York, I spoke about the sex trafficking bill, and also shared more about my story. There is always something rising to the surface, to be worked out more fully, to offer deeper understanding. The mentally disabled boy had been on my mind. I loved him. He was maybe seven years old, and I was nine. I wanted very badly to protect him, his innocence and sweetness, which I thought I had already lost. I seemed so much older and more in control. He didn't survive. In honoring that boy's life by telling his story, and feeling that pain, I also reclaimed a part of my own child self. So many tears have flown for this boy. So many more are there to be shed.