"You Wanna Go To Willard?"

Growing up, Laura felt different, even abnormal. She was the third child of four and the oldest girl. Her mother conditioned her to respect elders. It was required to always use proper behavior and articulate manners. Laura lived with the notion of a reward for good behavior. People liked children that behaved meticulously. Her life was focused on doing all the things people asked of her. She never objected or even questioned why. Convinced everyone would like her if she did. But the older she got, and the harder she tried, the worse it became. Haunted by her thoughts of being retarded, she struggled to find an answer. Through trial and error decisions she wandered down dark paths of repeated disappointments. With years of trying too hard, she wanted the truth about whom she was or who she was supposed to be. Was happiness a myth? Her persistence pushed her over the hurdles in her life. Something inside told her she would find it. The happiness she wanted and desperately needed.