For the Lost

The stories of students and children who are the victims of child abuse rarely intersect in published works for a variety of reasons, including a lasting social stigma which constitutes the child and adult as suspect, because of what they survived. Children who have abuse in their backgrounds are frequently thought to be unable to transition to the professional world, through the long years necessary to finish college, and are often thought to be incapable of the feats of self-control and adaptation which are a part of academic success. They are treated and spoken of as permanently ruined adults, condemned to a life which is profoundly impaired. This is a collection of stories of children who died as a result, and the few who've made it into academia and the professional world— what it costs the adult and child to be here. In this collection, my own story and the stories of others are presented not as a cautionary tale, or even a tale of the exceptional person, but as the attempt to demonstrate the unique problems academia and the professional world offers people like me. This is the attempt to offer the victims of child abuse a narrative which demonstrates the challenges and the horrors of these experiences, and offers a pattern which victims can use to get out of the places where they are trapped. This collection is for the lost, with love, from someone who has been there.Creative WritingMastersUniversity of New Mexico. Dept. of EnglishWarner, Sharon OardMueller, DanielJussawalla, FerozaThiel, Dian