The other day advocate and author Angela Shelton asked me for a testimonial, a statement of how she's helped me or shown me how to use my "sword of trauma" for good. Below is what I sent her as she has been a true inspiration for me since the first time I saw her way back at the beginning of my healing journey...could it have been 2007? 2008? I can't remember, but the date doesn't matter. What she's done to help me and countless others is what matters.
Yes, Angela. You
can have a testimonial from me.
If it weren't for
Angela Shelton and her "sword of trauma" crusade, I would have never
learned how to use my sword of trauma for good. I would have never written my
fictional novel WAITING FOR PAINT TO DRY. Not only was it a cathartic move for
me, to put into words my struggle to move from a rape survivor to life-loving
thriver, but it became so much more.
In writing
WAITING FOR PAINT TO DRY, I found a similar line of thought that moves through
"Searching for Angela Shelton", in that all our stories are similar.
All our stories have the same struggles. The same challenges. And, too, can
have the same victories. With this in mind, I created a fictional character -
Matty Bell - that anyone who has lived through the violence of sexual abuse can
relate to. Yes, I had my own story I could write about, but I didn't want to
write a memoir. That would only help me.
No, instead I
wrote a story that would be beneficial to all survivors. The story of Matty
Bell. Through her healing journey, readers are not only entertained - she's a
quirky artist - but through her, they'll learn tools of healing that they too
can utilize in their own quest to heal from their traumas. In WAITING FOR PAINT
TO DRY, Matty Bell's healing journey is a story of perseverance, love and life.
Anyone stuck in their own self-made monochromatic life will love this read.
Through her determination, they'll be taken on a ride that is not only fun,
funny and colorful, but will also help them start their own healing.
In truth, I wrote
WAITING FOR PAINT TO DRY for sexual assault survivors everywhere to know that
they are not alone, they too can heal, and they should never give up their life
to find the peace they seek. Only in healing from our traumas can we thrive.
And win.
And who taught me
that? Angela Shelton.
Just talking
about my book gets me excited. I just hope to find a publisher soon. I want to
get my book in the hands of survivors everywhere! And it's not for money. I'd
give my book away for free if it meant I'll never again turn on the news to
learn that another girl out there, another woman, has taken her life because of
the guilt and shame others have placed on her because they didn't believe her.
Because they told her it was her fault she was raped. Because for the 100th
time, she hears someone say "all girls cry rape."
It's for them
that I wrote this book. Those hands are worth more to me than any money could
bring.
Thank you, Angela
Shelton. Thank you for teaching me how to use my sword of trauma.
You are my super
hero.
Lia Mack
www.LiaMack.com
