Broken Wings Fly Higher

By Grace Waters

Broken Wings Fly Higher by Grace Waters tells the story of a young woman who was abandoned by her father, molested as a child, and eventually given up by her mother into foster care. Waters chronicles her journey from home-to- home while dealing with the stigma of being a foster child and the reality of having to grow up on her own. Broken Wings Fly Higher begins as a story of heartache and pain, obstacles and defeat, but is ultimately a story of triumph and victory.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Grace Waters
• Release date: Nov 3, 2015
• ISBN: 9781519936196

Grace Waters

Grace has always had a passion for writing, and has been doing so since she was a young girl. Grace's desire is not for fame or recognition, but she desires to reach out to others and relate to them in a way that no one has before her. Waters writes from experience in a humorous, light-hearted, but truthful manner, and only asks that the readers join in the experience! Waters lives her life by the mantra that "you can only fly as high as you believe you can, and when you reach the end of your belief, push through and fly higher".

Book preview

Table of Contents

  Special Thanks   Page 2

  Getting Started    Page 3

  Chapter One: Growing Pains Page 5

  Chapter Two: The Sting of Betrayal Page 13

  Chapter Three: Processing Into Maturity  Page 15

  Chapter Four: See Into Me Page 21

  Chapter Five: Motivation  Page 29

  Chapter Six: Independence  Page 37

  Chapter Seven: Life Happens  Page 43

  Chapter Eight: A New Beginning    Page 52

   

  Chapter Nine: Self-Discovery    Page 67

  Chapter Ten: Flying High  Page 69

  Conclusion: The Journey Ahead    Page 73

  Afterword: Purpose     Page 78

  About the Author  Page 81

*Special Note: Some names and identifying details have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals.

*While every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this book, the publisher assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions, or for damages resulting from the use of the information contained herein.

*Special Thanks*

Thank God for the experiences that brought me to the point of writing in this way. For every good and bad experience I am thankful, and I would not change anything that has happened because it all served to create the woman that I am today. To the man who still walks with me, my husband, thank you for your support and your push for me to believe in myself. I love you and I have learned to cherish our moments together. Thank you to my mother for stepping up in my life. I love you more than words can express. Thank you to all of my friends who have stuck by my side and supported me. Thank you New Life International Family Church, specifically Bishop Dr. Jeronn C. Williams I and First Lady Dr. LaToya K. Williams, for the words that you both have spoken into me.  Thank you for pushing me to speak and to move forward in life.  To all of those whom I have not mentioned by name, I thank you, and I love you. My life would not have been the same without you. 

*Getting Started*

I liken myself unto a bird that has fallen and broken its wings. The expectation is that a bird that has broken its wings may not be able to fly again, or if it does fly again it will not be able to fly as high as the other birds. For the rest of its life this bird will be looked down on while others soar past. It will not be able to experience the great heights and the thrill of climbing higher and faster. Instead, it has to stay close to the ground and watch others fly by. I have come to realize though, that a bird with broken wings is just a bird that is temporarily unable to do what it was created to do. It has been paused for a moment to get a chance to mend, and after that mending the bird is able to begin again the journey that it started out on. Not only is this bird able to again fly, but because of the endurance built, and the strength cultivated by the daily workouts, this bird can now soar higher than it ever soared before. This bird now has a new joy in flying high. It can look below at the places it has been, and know that it only has to go back down if it wants to. Low heights are no longer a requirement because the mended wings on the bird are stronger than ever before.

This book relates the experiences of a bird that had both its wings broken, but over time the bird learned how to fly again. Through mistakes and heartache, this bird learned what it means to triumph regardless of obstacles and situations. By no stretch of the imagination is this book pretending that those who go through these things and triumph are perfect; like everyone else we are all still working on our lives and trying to be all that we can be. The road for many of us has been long and rough, but it gets to a point where things work themselves out and life seems to take on a semblance of order. Throughout the many trials and troubles in life, it may seem that we are destined to fail—that we will never succeed. What we have to realize, though, is that we are constantly being shaped.  Sometimes we are being prepared for a time when we can help strengthen others with our stories. Every circumstance we have to deal with qualifies us to help someone else who may be in that same situation. Thank you to all who have played a part in this screenplay called life, for however long. You are appreciated. You were and are necessary.  Here is the story of a bird. Cry. Laugh. Live. 

Chapter One

I have heard it said that our minds and hearts can be likened unto a house. There are several levels in a house. There is the upstairs where all the bedrooms are. The main floor is where most of the activity takes place, and the basement is where all that we no longer need or have a place for in our daily lives gets stored. Many times we do not remember what is in our basement. We deal with the top two floors where there is the most recent activity, and the basement gets neglected. Things begin to pile up in the basement until it sometimes gets out of control. Eventually, we get to a point in life where we need to actually deal with the basement because we have stored away things that may be of use to us. When we start to dig in our basement we uncover so much about our past and our lives that helped to create the person we have become. I cannot recall every moment of my life, but I have come to a point where I have been able to pull enough from my basement to tell a story. 

The memories I have are not all fond memories.  I did not have my father in my life and my mother was so young.  She was still a teenager when she had me.  Because my father was married, it was not feasible that he could have anything to do with me because that would upset his relationship with his wife.  The last time I saw my father was when I was very young. My mother has seen him since then, and she says that he always asks her how her daughter is doing. That should hurt, but I am thankful that regardless of how it happened or the circumstances that surrounded my birth, I was created. I have spoken with my father recently, and we have started to build a relationship, but I am thankful for just how my life has turned out up until now. What happened with my mother though had an effect on me many years later that I have just now come to understand. Sometimes things happen in our lives that we do not understand or cannot see how we could have ever gotten involved in what we did, but then we look back at our history and see the connection. We need to know our history so we will know the things that we need not repeat from our history. Even so, what happened with my mother, and how I was conceived was no mistake. Yes, I was born as a bastard child, but I was born for a purpose, and was not born a mistake. God creates life, and if the child is conceived and then born, that child has a purpose to fulfill. Eventually, the purpose that is in the child will be revealed. We just have to make sure that we cultivate the gifts and purpose in that child so that they do not feel that they are a mistake.

Everyone deserves the opportunity to be loved no matter what the circumstances of their birth. Unfortunately, our society has misplaced the necessity of love. The giving of love has become conditional. In order to give love we want someone to first give us something that we feel is worthy of love. This is not love. Looking back on my life I