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Hello, Dorian,

This is Annette. Thanks for inviting me into your home and for being my best friend. First, I want you to know that I had a good mother. She raised me by herself because my father abandoned the family. I grew up without a dad in my life. When I really needed a dad to talk to, he was nowhere to be found. Eventually, he surfaced on another island, and my mom sent me and one of my brothers to live with him. It was just too difficult to raise all of us by herself. But even when I lived with my dad, we did not have the father-daughter relationship that I had hoped for.

I can remember the first time you and I met like it was yesterday. I was called to a job interview for a nanny position, and I came to your home and rang the doorbell. You opened the door and welcomed me in with a hug and a kiss on my cheek. You said, “Come in, my daughter!” I was very surprised and taken aback by the way that you greeted me for the first time. Something in my heart told me that you were a good person. While I was on the job, you would talk to me about a lot of different things. I grew to trust you, and you always gave me good advice about things that were going on in my life. Not only did we become good friends, but we developed that father-daughter relationship that I longed for. You became the father role model that I didn’t have while growing up. I believe that God meant you to make me a better person. Thank you!

Love,
Annette
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Annette Taylor comes from St. Vincent—of seven siblings, the only one who left to make her life in New York. She has been a caretaker for young and old alike, but after marrying her husband, David, with his loving support, she has been accomplishing personal goals, including education. At the Brooklyn Public Library’s Eastern Parkway Adult Learning Center, her tutor is Judith Lewis.