I LIVED A CHILDHOOD OF LIES
Feb 22, 2022
4 minutes
WORDS: JENNY ACKLAND
As I carefully placed my newborn son Bailey into my mum’s arms in July 2011, I desperately wanted her to feel the rush of love I’d experienced when I first held him. I waited, hoping to hear her tell me how wonderful and beautiful her grandchild was.
‘He’s fat,’ my mum Elinor said, squeezing his chubby little thighs.
‘He’s perfect,’ I corrected, pulling him away.
‘MOST WERE MYSTERIOUS MAIL-ORDER POWDERS’
My mother’s vicious tongue was something I’d grown accustomed to over the years, but I wasn’t about to let her poisonous words hurt my child the way they’d hurt me.
From a young age, I had felt unwanted and would often be the target of
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