DR. WALLACE: I'm writing to brighten your day. At the end of my letter, I'm sure you'll be smiling and saying that your day is sunnier.
During my senior year in high school, my boyfriend of two years and I became engaged. About three months before graduation I discovered that I was pregnant. I stayed in school and graduated with good grades. After graduation, my fiance moved in with my mother and me. I was on cloud nine. I had a healthy pregnancy and a fiance who promised to be by my side forever.
In one day, that all came crashing down. He left with no notice, saying he wasn't the father and he would take a paternity test to prove it. I was eight months pregnant when he left and in the following four weeks I was transported to the hospital room six times for stress-related false labor. I tried to contact his family to help me find reasons for his sudden departure, but they refused to talk to me and after a few calls they threatened to have me arrested for harassment.
The evening I brought my daughter into this world I called him, but he hung up on me. But when our daughter was six months old, he called again and said he loved me and wanted to get married so we can become a family.
I thought that he was sincere, so we were married and moved in with his parents because he didn't earn enough money to support a wife and child. We lived there for two years. During that time, he had seven different jobs and four different girlfriends. I continued to stay with him because I thought I loved him and eventually we would become the family I dreamed about.
I came to the realization that my daughter and I could be a loving family without an unfaithful husband and a do-nothing father. During my stay at his parents' house, I had a part-time job that gave me an opportunity to secretly put away some of my earnings. This allowed me to buy a trailer home.
I am now working full-time at a fair wage and my daughter and I couldn't be happier. She is now three years old and the light of my life. She keeps my spirits high and I'm very proud to be her mother. Last week we made the discovery of the joy of gardening together. My daughter and I are a family — a happy, loving, God-fearing family — and I am proud as proud as I can be. — Proud mom, Indianapolis, In.
PROUD: You are 100 percent correct. Your letter brightened my day and I know it will keep doing so for a long time. Thanks for sharing your beautiful uplifting life. Your daughter and her dedicated mother are a shining example of the power of dedication and love. Life sometimes teaches us hard lessons, and it's how we bounce back and go forward that counts. You deserve praise for what you've accomplished for your family.
KEEP TAKING HONORS CLASSES
DR. WALLACE: I have a teenager who is taking honors classes. She gets B's in these classes and A's in regular classes. In preparation for going to college, I suggested she take these harder classes. My question is, is she better off taking honors classes and getting B's or taking regular classes and getting A's? - Interested mom, Warwick, RI.
MOM: You're very right daughter should continue to take appropriate honors classes. College admission offices give a higher rating for honor's credits. In addition, the more challenging high school classes serve as excellent preparation for the rigors of a college education. I wish her success in all of her classes.
Dr. Robert Wallace welcomes questions from readers. Although he is unable to reply to all of them individually, he will answer as many as possible in this column. E-mail him at rwallace@thegreatestgift.com. To find out more about Dr. Robert Wallace and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.
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