Almost Doesn't Count

By D C Wiggins

While mentoring a young man named Lorenzo, Doris is grief-stricken from an accident that changed the course of his future. Doris refuses to allow the hard work that she has done in turning his life around go to waste. With fierce determination, Doris assumes the responsibility for ensuring that Lorenzo’s infant son, Zelman, does not succumb to the pressures of urban life. Doris becomes adamant that giving up is no longer an option and almost doesn’t count.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Claire Aldin Publications, LLC
• Release date: Nov 1, 2014
• ISBN: 9781311694003

D C Wiggins

D. C. Wiggins is an author, book coach, and educator. She writes short novels as conversation starters with a message of inspiration and hope. D. C. Wiggins is dedicated to helping you grow spiritually and excel professionally.

Book preview

Almost Doesn’t Count

D. C. Wiggins

Copyright© 2014 by D. C. Wiggins

All Rights Reserved

Edited by: So It Is Written Writing & Editing Services

Cover Design: 23 Exchange

All rights reserved. This book was self-published by the author. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form by any means without the express permission of the author. This includes reprints, excerpts, photocopying, recording, or any future means of reproducing text.

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales or persons, living or dead, is coincidental and beyond the intent of the author.

Published in the United States by Smashwords

Dedication

This novel is dedicated to the memory of Leoler Baldwin Coe and the countless relatives who were fed, nurtured and supported by her love and good ole southern hospitality.

Acknowledgments

There are many others who pushed me along the way to complete this novel. Though too numerous to name, I thank you for your contribution of time, expertise and passion with this project.

#AlmostDoesntCount

You can follow news about this book using the hashtag #AlmostDoesntCount on social media networks.

Book Blurb

While mentoring a young man named Lorenzo, Doris is grief-stricken from an accident that changed the course of his future. Doris refuses to allow the hard work that she has done in turning his life around go to waste. With fierce determination, Doris assumes the responsibility for ensuring that Lorenzo’s infant son, Zelman, does not succumb to the pressures of urban life. Doris becomes adamant that giving up is no longer an option and almost doesn’t count.

What Readers Are Saying…

The Grandma Doris’ of the neighborhood are the missing piece in today’s society. With the right people in your life, you can overcome the stumbling blocks and make it through.

~B. Matthews, lifelong Detroiter

Here is a thought-provoking story about growing up in the city of Detroit. It gives credence to the untold numbers of caregivers who parent the child of another, often without appreciation or honor. Congratulations Dr. Wiggins on a terrific book. I really enjoyed it!

~N. Walker, native Detroiter

"The tone of the book is very down home and slightly urban, with references that are relatable to a vast demographic. It tells the story of how guidance, a kind heart, and a path carved out to achieve a goal can impact and alter a young person's life and allow older adults to realize their accountability in their own lives and choices. 

Even though I don't normally read fiction, I found this book to be engaging and an excellent read."

~T.M.V., lifelong Detroiter

Chapter One

Unexpected Roadblocks

The sound of sirens awakened me but, I couldn’t move. I glanced to my right to see Lorenzo, the young man who had been like a son to me since the day he stopped by to sell candy in order to raise money for school. There was no school fundraiser, though. He lived with his aunt who ran the neighborhood candy house. Lorenzo decided to make the business mobile because he needed money for a school trip the next morning. Going mobile meant walking from house to house to sell the candy instead of just waiting on someone to come to their door. At his house, there were no extra funds for field trips, new uniforms or anything more than the bare essentials. The primary components of those essentials were provided by the federal government in the form of food stamps and subsidized rent payments. On the North End, you had to make it happen on your own and Lorenzo learned that fact early. Since that day, he stopped by after school to talk on some days, and eat a hot, home-cooked meal on other days. The connection between us was immediate. That boy practically lived at my house. He didn’t have a mother at home; his aunt treated him like a second-class citizen compared to her own offspring, so I became his play mother. This infuriated my own children, who were now adults and had kids of their own. They didn’t understand why I spent so much time with Lorenzo or why I chose to stay in that brick house on Melbourne Street. The close-knit neighborhood that once existed now resembled a jack-o-lantern on Halloween. The empty spaces were too numerous to count and offered an eerie appearance to every passersby .

The tears refused to be contained as I gazed upon his curly fade littered with glass from my