"Safe Haven"
by Maryjo Faith Morgan

Abstract:  

" ... Staying here was all that stood between me and certain death, I was sure.  So with all my might I willed myself cemented to that spot.  I would not leave its safety.  I would never risk that awful chaos … it could only happen if I got into a car … a car that could crash … just like Carol Ann’s.  Nope, I was never ever, going to get into a car again.  No more weeping adults. No getting dead, not for me.  I’d fight him if he tried to make me go, I’d even kick him if I had to.  My mind was made up, and my seven year old body was rigid with terror and resolve.  I sat stiff-legged on my bed, my back flat against the wall. ..."

In this true story, Maryjo describes how her father gave her a lasting gift in a most unexpected way.