Children who have been or are being abused do feel alone in the night. They are so afraid, feel ashamed, often times trying to hide within themselves, hoping the monster will disappear.  So many have no one to turn to, their cries go unanswered. I know all too well as do many others who have lived with abuse growing up how it feels to live with the “shame.”  As children, we felt this shame, as our abuser would often tell us “it’s your fault that this is happening,” what did we know?  We were children, the fear that permeated throughout our very soul, kept us prisoner.  Silenced, often beaten into silence or told we would be banished from the family unit.  So many ways to silence a small child.

We need to end the stigma of child abuse, not just during the month of April in the U.S. or October in Canada, but through-out all of the year.  Children are a precious gift bestowed on us by our Creator. To love, cherish, guide them on their journey through life.  No child should know the feelings of being abused, either sexually, physically or emotionally.  They should not live in hell binding them tightly to abuse.