BTW

By the way, I think I may have FASD as well. I am known for saying what is on my mind and not filtering enough, and I think I did that today.

When we first moved here, over 7 years ago, there was a family of 6 kids that lived by us, and it was an inner city family that was struggling. I got to know one of the girls really well, her name is Keke. She hung out a lot at our house and they moved to Fridley probably 5 or so years ago.

She probably calls me about once or twice a year, and then I ran into her last year at the downtown Target and we touch based a little bit. Well, I ran in to her today at the CVS pharmacy that is a few blocks from my house and learned that she lives back in the neighborhood.

We chatted for a bit, and she said she would stop by sometime and gave me her boyfriend's cell phone number as she didn't have one. She is 19, almost 20, no job, and not attending school. I harassed her about both. I use to talk to this girl regularly about not getting pregnant as I do to the 17 year old I currently mentor from my kids school. Out of wedlock pregnancy is such an epidemic in the inner city and it drives me nuts!!!!!!

I was waiting for my prescription, and I realized that she was waiting for one too (I thought she had seen me at the pharmacy area and came up to say hi). I then said that I hoped she was picking up an Rx for birth control because she did not need a baby!!!!! She actually was, and told me that she has not had any children. Well, this may sound really bad of me to have said, but we really had long conversations about this back in the day. I told her I was proud of her for making such good choices.

My husband could not believe that I said this to her, but I have always been pretty open with talking to teenagers about sex. I truly believe that abstinence is the best and smartest route (and I tell them this of course!), but I know that it is not realistic in a teenagers life who lives in an at risk family and does not know Christ on a personal basis. Anyway, my filters are often off. That's all I'm saying.