Week 11: Lucky
My mama’s name was Sharon Rose Reynolds. I came to live with her and my father at the the age of 2 ½. I was a hard to place child who was a challenge but she faced it head on. She stuck with me and worked me through my issues.
She was born in Kansas City in 1957. She was the 4th of 5 children. My Grandma was married to her first husband when she had my mama. Her first husband finally released my grandma to allow my grandfather to adopted her even though she was his daughter.
Her parents were focused on providing for the family, they worked two jobs each to keep afloat. The days were spent with her mother’s sisters or at the baby sitters. One day, at the age of two she was playing with the baby sitters son. He had found his dad’s lighter; as he flipped it open the flame sprang up and caught her dress on fire. The next days were spent in agony, the family not knowing if she would live. Over ninety percent of her body was burned, recovery was slow, and eventually her clothes would hide the physical scarring that was left. The emotional scarring would last long into her adult years.
The environment that she grew up in was hard, gangs were prevalent and wanting to be accepted she joined in. She easily moved into the gang family, stealing a coat to get in, she fellowshipped in very rough circles. At Wyandotte High School she earned letters in many after school activities such as the Pep Team, Debaters, choir and National Honor Society. She seemed like a different person at school, this motivated involved young girl, did not seem to fit the embittered, rough and tough gang member.
One day while sitting in class she heard an announcement about an event happening that weekend. Her curiosity up she attended the David Wilkerson Crusade. There she listened to Nicky Cruz, a gang leader straight out of Hell’s Kitchen, give his testimony about his life as gang member, the drugs, the stealing, and beatings. He tells how one man, David Wilkerson, felt a call to go to New York, to share the Gospel. Nicky Cruz testified to the life changing experience he had when he accepted Christ. Listening intently when they offered up a prayer for those in the auditorium she came forward acknowledging her sins and accepting the life changing water. For many this change happens gradually, working it into their life. For her it was immediate, that Monday when she went to school her appearance was different from the clothes on her back to the countenance on her face. Bible in hand she was approached by her “gang family”, knowing you don’t just leave the “family” she was ready to take whatever they had in store for her. Asking her to renounce Christ she refused. Immediately they began to beat her. As they hit her she prayed from them, that God would use this moment to reach out to them. Knocked to the ground she was kicked, rocks were thrown and when they had had their say they spat on her, leaving her lying on the ground with many cuts and bruises and a broken jaw.
After all she has experienced one would think she was unlucky. As much as she embraced her Irish Heritage, she was not supersitious. She did not believe in luck. She had her faith in God. It was this faith that brought her through such a traumatic beating. This test of faith only made her stronger. She would grow out of the name “burn baby”. “Pretty Lady” would become the name that my father gave her. As I look back on her life I think that she was blessed.
