I loved you before you saw me, before our eyes locked, when we shared a heartbeat. I dreamed of you. I imagined what you would look like when I held you in my arms for the first time. I never realized that I would have to break our bond so that you could thrive.
You see, I had a monster that followed me. He broke my heart and he broke my bones.
My spirit was the last to go when he attacked my beautiful dreams of raising you with your brothers and sister. The very thought of the monster finding us, and involving you, drove a sword deep into my chest and pierced my heart. Your innocence had to be protected. I searched my soul and found you a promising Mother and Father.
I knew they would protect you, that they would teach you to be the best man there ever is/ was. I trusted them to love you, and to honor our precious bond. Things turned out so terribly wrong for me. I’m deeply grateful that everything is amazing for you. Except that my heart broke into a thousand mini pieces the day that I had to say goodbye to you. In the rain, as they wheeled me out of the hospital holding your car seat so close to my heart your beautiful eyes locked onto mine. I felt so ashamed. I loved you so much my beautiful Son. I handed you over to your the wonderful man that was to become your Father. I believe in that moment, I felt my heart snap. You started to cry, and suddenly everything I thought I was doing that was right felt so terribly wrong. I think that it was the breaking of what had been our bond. I never saw you again. They had to move far away, and they told me that they would let me be a part of your life, but you still do not know me. I only receive pictures of you on Christmas, and sometimes your birthday. I never quite understood how a heart could be broken by a situation, yet coming to a realization of the situation being a blessing in disguise would make it whole again.
That will make no sense at all to many, all that matters is that I know what I am saying. It’s not an “adoption” they are your guardians, yet they are your Mother, and Father to me. However; You are still my Son too. I don’t want to confuse you so I stay far away. I open your pictures when I receive them, and I pray. I hope that one day, you will understand that they needed you, and WE needed them. I am kind of your mother, I love you more that you will ever know. I just hope our bond is strong enough that you will not be harmed by my decision to give you the world while mine was quaking and crumbling with fear and unstableness. They gave you everything that I could not. I love you…

I am a busy guy. There’s no denying that. In fact, my work week sees me writing practically every single day. I’m not one to complain. I love what I get to do every day.
Not everyone has that luxury to be able to go to work and know that they’ll enjoy what each day brings. I consider myself fortunate to be able to do that.
When the work day ends, I take some me time. Having the time to myself at night after work does wonders for my mental health.
I’ll often unwind by going upstairs, turning on my XBOX and playing some innings of MLB The Show.
I find that video games like MLB The Show and Power Wash Simulator are a great way to relieve stress. Taking the time to relax and unwind is important. Be sure to take time for yourself.

Never in a million years would I have ever thought it would be YOU.
To bring my heart so much pain like throwing salt on an open wound
You were my why and one of the most special gifts from God that I truly admired.
Wanting the best life for you gave me reason to work harder.
I wanted to be the mother to you that I always longed for and
what was once a blessing now seems like a curse
Oh, how I never thought the tables would turn.
Though I will always love you my heart resembles a broken glass and
Though pain and disappointment has cut me so deep
I just cover it up with a mask.
How could you say you love me yet cause me so much pain
I’m constantly worried and praying for you.
while you’re out without a care in the world dancing in the rain
When you sit back and reflect on your life
All of your happiest moments were due to MY sacrifice.
Now I’m lucky if you would even consider my advice
You have transformed from my baby, my first love
To a person that’s intentionally toxic in my life and
As I try to figure out what caused this change I have yet to figure out why
But as much as you have hurt me
I cant find it in my heart not to love you
Just know my objective was always to the best mom I could ever be to you
But with the results I see I count it as a mission failed
But I know God can change anything.
So in the meantime, I’m waiting for him to prevail.

Parenting reveals a love in you that you never knew exist. Thats the real definition of love at first sight sealed with a gentle kiss. You have this new human that soley belongs to you now you can finally put a face to them kickball kicks you felt in your womb. Everything changes in a instant and you are officially titled a mom, and the weight that comes with this title automatically mentally mentions that you are STRONG. But may I full warn you that you have a long road ahead and there are many things you will experience especially when you are not prepared. Its levels to this parenting process that you will surely go through, but every child is different so best wishes to you. No matter what you must keep the faith and don’t give up because abandonment is not a option no matter how many nerves they grow up and pluck. Its attending games, recitals and graduations and planning birthdays and sleepovers that make the life of parenting feel so rewarding. Not to mention if you are a respected example as a parent they may inquire for your advice and opinion and even share the issues of their heart and their deepest dark secrets. Parenting is trial and error but it’s a mandatory assignment to LOVE. Remember love is a action word and a valid license to serve. Parenting produces memories and is also designed to introduce good habits and sometimes the pointers that you may get from books and pamphlets don’t always make you a great parent. Its dedication mixed with prayer and bullet proof patience and a community of support that’s willing to listen in a conversation and not sit in the judgment seat like there mirrors are windex clean but remind you that you are not alone because we stand as a team. So parenting is a community full of experiences and advice so welcome aboard and buckle up for the ride.

Dear precious daughter,

I am writing this letter to you with a heavy heart, as I never got the chance to hold you in my arms and tell you how much I love you. You were taken away from us too soon, and it has been a source of immense pain for me and your mother ever since.

I want to apologize to you for not being there for your mother after we lost you. I was in so much pain and felt so helpless that I didn’t know how to be there for her. I thought it was the right thing to do to distance myself from the situation, but looking back, I know that it only made things worse.

My inability to be there for your mother during that time caused a rift in our relationship that led to the eventual breakdown of our marriage. I know that I bear some responsibility for this, and it’s something that I have been carrying with me for a long time.

Losing you left a void in my life that nothing could ever fill. It felt like a part of me had been taken away, and I was unable to find any relief from the pain. But then, one day, you came to me in a dream, and it was like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders.

You let me know that you are with me, even though I can’t hold you in my arms. You are here for me in my heart and my soul, and that has brought me some measure of comfort over the years. I still cry for you, thinking about how I wasn’t there for you and your mother when we needed each other the most.

I want you to know that you are loved and missed every day. I know that I can never make up for the pain that I caused, but I promise to honor your memory and carry you with me always.

Love always,
Your Father

Dear Unsealers,

Happy Easter to all who celebrate!

Proud to be part of this MAGNIFICENT group of writers and PEOPLE! Keep on INSPIRING OTHERS to BE THEIR BEST AND DO THEIR BEST!!

With Love

Dear Unsealers,

My name is Oswald Perez. I’m a poet and writer that lives in New York City. I’m also a person that has Cerebral Palsy.

I’m thankful to have found this group. It took a bit of effort on my part to take the leap and become a member of the group.

As I happened to be scrolling one night and came across the sponsored advertisement for the group. After asking for the Zoom link for one of the candid conversations, I knew that this would be a new landing spot for me.

I’m in the midst of trying to become my ideal self, or something close to it.

Among my goals in life, I want to become an independent adult and a writer/speaker. Someone tells his story of inspiration to those that need to hear the message. That it’s okay to embrace every inch of yourself and not let the circumstances of the past define who you are in the present moment.

And a person that chronicles everything that he’s doing. His travels, hopes, dreams and ambitions for books, posts on various feeds and videos.

Hello everyone, first this is the first letter I’m posting on this so please don’t be too judgmental lol. Kidding aside, let me tell you a little more about myself I suffered a devastating lower back injury from a car accident I suffered when I was 13 years old. It turned my entire life into a tailspin downward for a decade I was in a wheelchair in severe pain in my lower back and extremities to the point where I needed to use a wheelchair to get to the bathroom in my own home!!!! My social life was non-existent and no Doctors would do anything to help me because of my age. All they would do is drug me and put me in Psychiatric wards and never believed that I had pain, I heard so many times, “He’s a kid, he don’t know pain” so many times I wanted to go home and cry and many times that’s exactly what I did. At the same time I was prescribed numerous prescriptions harmful drugs that had massive side effects and had me throwing up and getting me immensely sick. I spent night after night in various ER’s around the Western New York area including out of the area such as Boston, Rochester and Cleveland but none were willing to do what it took to help me. But I finally found the right Doctors after a decade that felt more like an eternity, after an eleven-hour procedure I can get around, walk, move and actual live life again after watching so much of it go by my bedroom window. I am now pursuing my lifelong dream of becoming a sports play by play announcer and got to spend this past summer announcing games for the Batavia Muckdogs a local baseball team here in Buffalo as I work my way up to one day hopefully becoming a radio play by play announcer for Major League Baseball. However, I am also writing this letter to lend an ear, what makes this community great is that we all bond over the trials and tribulations of life and within that we become closer as potentially friends. During my medical ordeal I thought about committing suicide three different times but I thought no there is a better way. But, I’ve certainly been through my ups and downs in life and I know that sometimes just having someone to listen makes all the difference, so if anyone needs somebody to listen or just needs a friend I’m available and willing to help when I’m not calling games of course lol. But I am here and want the members of this community to know that I am here because I know dark times in life and not just my own physical health, I’ve dealt with alcoholic family members, family members who survived domestic abuse and a lot of other dark and scary and downright sad and messed up things this world can thrown upon a person. And when you get swept up in the darkness, sometimes you just need someone to know you care. Unfortunately, I know how quickly life can change in the blink of an eye. I’ve lost family members to covid and even in my own life, one second I’m perfectly healthy coming back from religion class on a Sunday and the next second I get in a major accident that flipped my life on its proverbial ear. And just the rapid and sudden change of life can be a ton and overwhelming to deal with, I know that feeling firsthand and again I am willing to listen to those who may be dealing with that currently in their own lives and again I am here. Again I understand that you do not know me and I would never ask any of you to share anything with me you don’t feel comfortable sharing. I’m just offering a friendly ear to listen and I think especially with the hard times this world has seen the last couple years whether it be the pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine Conflict, or just flat out life itself I believe we can get through it so long as we all support each other and listen to each other in times of need and great distress. So I would like to extend the olive branch and offer my friendship to anyone who feels the world is against them or they have very little company in their own lives I know what that feels like and if I can help you guys from feeling the almost hopeless isolation I felt for so long then that will make my day and hopefully make yours as well. One last thing to conclude my incessant ramblings, I think I speak for everyone when I say what a wonderful person Lauren is for putting this all together making this forum possible, she has been nothing but kind to me my entire time as a member of this community and I’m sure she has done the same for everyone in the Unsealed Community, Lauren you should be very proud of yourself for what you have accomplished and are accomplishing with this, the world needs more people like you!!!! You are a true angel. Once again, my name is John and I want to thank you guys in advance for listening to my long-windedness, I truly do appreciate it. I know it has been a while since I posted my first letter but I felt given the nature of this community I felt it necessary to offer a potential friendship and just to have another person in your corner when it feels like you have no one. Remember you are not alone and you truly matter, even though life may do things that make you feel that you don’t you do. I’ve been there and that’s why if you need someone to listen I’m here, I’m just a letter away. On that note, that’s it for me for now, feel free to reply or reach out guys if you ever need someone to just listen. I look forward to interacting with you guys very soon. Your friend John Carubba

I’m a writer and words have meaning. My Dad was a Marine and for him Action is what matters. I don’t expect him to say I love you, because that is not the generation he grew up in where Men expressed emotions. Yet I know he loves me when he took care of his family and bought me action figures (Star Trek or Superheroes) even when I broke the last ones. I learn from my Dad to be more of a Man who may not always say what he feels but shows it. I’m not going to ever hear my Dad gush with emotions and I don’t need to.

He didn’t say it when I was a little boy who wanted to make movies and he’s not going to say it now.

Paradoxically, I do use the words, “I love you,” but only if I mean them and I have did some action to show it is how I feel. I’m not going too much into my personal life though. I do that by writing characters and using fiction as a basis for truths I have found in life.

I have found some use “I love you” to manipulate others and their actions are the total opposite of Love. In writing and researching crime stories, I find Women and Men who have been abused verbally and physically by people who constantly say “I love you.”

So as the son of a Marine, I will say, if someone really and truly loves you, they won’t have to say it. You will know it.

Oddly enough one of my friends likes to compliment me in what can be called paradoxically jealous. He said, I was fearless.

The circumstances was I went and talked to someone while he didn’t. Often times I strike up conversations with people I find intriguing. I didn’t want anything but just to say hello.

My Friend, on the other hand, puts a lot of thought into how things benefit him and tries to make calculations on whether it is worth it to meet someone new.
I didn’t see it as being “fearless,” but just being friendly. I explained this to my Friend who didn’t get the benefit of saying hello to a stranger. Although I just decided to take the compliment and keep being fearless (friendly).

I told my Friend, sometimes you just have to do nice things and not want anything in return.

I told him a story from a movie “The Fisher King.”

ly saw a man alone and in pain. And he asked the king “What ails you friend?” The king replied “I’m thirsty. I need some water to cool my throat”. So the fool took a cup from beside his bed, filled it with water and handed it to the king. As the king began to drink, he realized his wound was healed. He looked in his hands and there was the holy grail, that which he sought all of his life. And he turned to the fool and said with amazement, “How can you find that which my brightest and bravest could not?” And the fool replied “I don’t know. I only knew that you were thirsty”

Hey Guys!

I decided to introduce pen pals in groups of four. You can also add and write to anyone in the community, but this just breaks the ice a bit.

So @johncarubbagmail-com @zaysmith1 @polok12 @prelude2cinema7 all say hello.

To break the ice, share with each other the best compliment you have ever received. One of my personal favorites was from a friend from Buffalo. She had a lot of issues with the guy she was dating at the time. And when I was leaving she wrote me a card. In it she said, “Whenever I have to make a strong decision in life, I think of you.”

I was so touched. Another favorite came from a man who was blind. He said, “Everyone keeps telling me that it’s too bad I can’t see because you are really beautiful. But I don’t need vision to see that you are beautiful.”

He was saying I was beautiful person.

I can’t wait to hear your stories!

You guys can start a new letter/new thread in this group or any other group. You can post your letters on your social media and decide whether you want the letters to be public for the world or private for The Unsealed community.

Thank you for being a part of the family, and I hope you guys enjoy writing to each other. If you have any questions, I am always here to help.

I love you all,

Hey Guys!

I decided to introduce pen pals in groups of four. You can also add and write to anyone in the community, but this just breaks the ice a bit.

So @sarita @lisaferreri21 @vcalero @jfritz all say hello. You are all strong and courageous people with stories to tell.

To break the ice, share with each other something that made you proud during the pandemic. Maybe you learned something new. Maybe you realized you were stronger than you thought. Perhaps you opened yourself up to making new virtual friends or maybe you started a business.

When the pandemic hit, I thought The Unsealed would unravel. I thought no one would sign up, and I wouldn’t be able to afford to keep going. While I was scared, I decided to step on the gas, even more, using the extra time at home to work harder and reach out to people one by one.

During the pandemic, I built enough of a foundation to get it to where it is today (which is still in its infancy, but it is a start). I am really proud I didn’t give up. I am really proud I pushed myself. I am really proud that I fought as hard as I could when facing fear, and I was blessed with all of your support.

You guys can start a new letter/new thread in this group or any other group. You can post your letters on your social media and decide whether you want the letters to be public for the world or private for The Unsealed community.

I can’t wait to read your letters and why you are proud.

Thank you for being a part of the family, and I hope you guys enjoy writing to each other. If you have any questions, I am always here to help.

I love you all,

Dear @telina27 and @amazz94,

I want to officially introduce you two as pen pals! Both of you are such kind people with creative minds. Telina, Alex is artists. Alex, Telina is a writer. You both have had loss in your life but also have experienced a lot of love from your families.

I thought I would start you off with an icebreaker question. You guys also don’t have to reply to this thread. You can start your own.

But the icebreaker is, what is the best compliment you’ve ever received. I have two. In high school, I didn’t get into honors English. My guidance counselor advocated for me.

He said, “If you give her a challenge, she won’t only meet it, she will far exceed it.”

I got into honors English that year and also got an A in the class. I wanted to prove my guidance counselor right.

In my 20’s I also had a friend tell me, “When I need to make a strong decision I think of you.”

I didn’t know she perceived me that way. I was so touched.

Anyways, feel free to start a new letter in any of the groups/topics and start writing to each other.

Be kind. Be supportive. Be honest and have fun! Let me know if you have any questions.

xo