Like you took the wrong street and made some turns that you thought would take you back to where you wanted to be but every turn you took only made the problem worse. All of a sudden nothing is familiar and you don’t even know which direction to turn. You genuinely have no idea how to get back to the path you started on.

Do you remember how that felt? Terrifying. It’s scary to have no idea where you are or how you even got there. No GPS, no map, nobody to help you.

Life was like that for me – no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn’t get back to where I wanted to be.

When I was a teenager my dad forced me to have an abortion after I found out I was pregnant. I trusted my dad, but it was hard. Later I got married and had children, but the marriage was abusive. I got into drugs and then he divorced me and wouldn’t let me see the kids. It took a long time for me to get clean but I kept trying; I kept choosing to get clean even though it’s been a really hard, long road. It was the right decision no matter how hard, just so I could see my kids again – I love them so much even though I’ve made mistakes.

Then, something happened that I never thought would happen again: I fell in love. I never thought I’d fall in love again. I never thought I’d be happy again. We were helping each other get back on the right path in life and things were going so good. And then one day I figured out I might be pregnant! It was a good thing I found Clearway because I had no insurance and not enough money to go to the doctor.

I can’t even tell you how surprised and excited we were when we saw the ultrasound. I was really pregnant! I was going to be a mom again. Before I left the advocate gave me a homemade baby blanket. I hugged it tight and the tears just came, I couldn’t help it. At that moment I knew God was giving me a second chance. They prayed for me, and I left with so much joy that I hadn’t felt in so long.

Clearway gave me so many community resources that I needed to help me make the right next turn and keep me going in the direction I needed to. People have a hard time giving others a second chance no matter what evidence they see. Some people may think I’m crazy to keep the baby, but I know that this baby is a gift. Have you ever been lost and then found your way back? It’s the absolute best thing in the world.