My name is Destiny Heaven LaShae, one might wonder why I have so many names. Let me explain.

I was born to Amy and David. Amy was 17 when she gave birth to me, and David was 22. My parents loved me, as im sure they do now. They called me their little “Dessy”. I was David’s first child, and Amy’s second. She had my sister Caitlin in a previous relationship, when she was 15. I was adopted when I was a year old (it wasn’t final until I was 4)  by Darlene and Jackie.

I called Amy and David aunt and uncle from the time I was 3 until I was the age of 8. Every time I would ask Darlene “What happened to aunt Amy and uncle David? Why don’t they come around anymore?”, I would get into trouble. I would often get yelled at, and Darlene would start crying. I was told never to speak of them again. I would obey my mother, and never talk about them, but in the back of my mind I would still wonder about them, miss them, and hoped that they missed me too.

When I was about 10 years old, I knew something was wrong considering I had a mom that was 59 years old, and a dad that was 64 years old. So one day I was searching in my “Mother” Darlene’s file with a friend, and I came across a box with my birth certificate in it. That is when everything started making sense. The people who I thought were my Aunt and Uncle, were really my biological parents. I always knew that something was strange, because Darlene had burned my baby book, and every picture from the time I was born until I was a year old did not have my  them in it. It would have my Aunt and Uncle in almost every single picture, along with their children. I later would find out that they were my brother and sisters.

When I was 12, my adopted mother got sick, and passed away. My adopted father was not able to take care of me on his own, so the family thought it would be best for me to go live with Darlene’s sister, Brenda.

When I moved in with Brenda, it was a huge transition for me, because I had to adjust to the way she parented (since she had 2 older children, and she might not know how to raise a girl, and how to care for her: Since her kids were boys), and also having to deal with the loss of my mother. She forbid me from having any kind of social media, in fear that I would try to contact my biological parents. And eventually I did, no matter the consequences. I had a facebook account in school that no one knew about, and I found my biological mother and father. They accepted my friend requests, we were friends for a short time, until Brenda found out and made me deactivate my account. While friends with them, I found out that David got remarried to a woman named Pamela, and Amy got remarried to Darrell.

During those years of me living with Brenda, I had to follow very strict rules, and I had suffered emotional abuse. I later found out that one of my relatives, had contacted Amy and told her the situation I was in. A couple of months later Amy and her husband had filed for custody of me.

At first the idea of Amy filing for custody of me made me upset, because they painted such an ugly picture of her and said terrible things about her. Amy was contacting Brenda to see if she could spend some time with me, so we could get to know each other (as mother and daughter). Brenda was against the idea of us meeting, but eventually she gave in. I finally met Amy, we went to the movies, and conversated over dinner. I had told Amy how I felt, and the bad things that were said about her. She explained her side of the story, and I found out what really happened with my adoption.

On February 18, 2014 I decided to go live with my biological mother, and her husband. This was another huge transition for me, because I had to change schools, and adjust to the way they lived and live by their rules, this was a chance that I was willing to take. Amy and Darrell are strict, but they are strict in a different way (they want what is best for me, and Brenda just wanted to keep me away from the world). They allow many privileges that Brenda did not. They make sure that I set goals, and have high standards in life, and that I make school my first priority. I don't mind obeying their rules, because I know they have my best intrest at heart and they want me to succeed. I could never picture a bright future for myself, until I came to live with them. They give me hope.

I am so happy that I made the choice, to give my mother a second chance. That was the hardest decision that I had to make in my life. I will say that it was the best one. I am so blessed to have gotten that chance. And to say I have an actual family. I realize that some children never get the chance to meet their biological families , but I am grateful that I got that opportunity. My mother and stepfather are going to adopt me soon.