SIMPLE WORD, GRACE! Read my story & you will undestand:

Where It All Started!

In 1992 while sitting in a tiny, cold, concrete cell at the LA County Jail, my life came to a serious crossroads. Before I tell you what happened in that cell I want to briefly share my life story and what led up to this dramatic experience.

My life story is not unusual. Many have experienced the crossroads miracle like me and have lived to tell their story to others. Here goes my chance to tell you.

I was born in Liberia, W.Africa. My Dad is ethnically Armenian born and raised in Beirut, Lebanon. My biological mom is ethnically Liberian, born and raised in West Africa, Liberia. I was raised by a stepmother, who is from Lebanon, like my dad.

My family came to America in 1978 when I was five years old. We fled from the civil war that broke out in the capital of Monrovia, Liberia due to the corruption in the government and the high prices on food.

My dad and step mom (who raised me) were both hard working people.They labored day and night when we came to America, trying to make ends meet. I think the stress of making money and long hours at work caused the climate of our home to be tense. Every evening my dad and two brothers, who worked with him at the family business would come home and argue about financial, business , and family related issues.

While they passionately fought, I would sit in my room with the lights turned off and the door barely cracked open, listening and wondering, "why is this happening to me, why does life seem so hard?" After a few years, the fighting seemed normal, but my existence seemed meaningless.

My sister, who was a couple of years older, pretty much felt the same emotionally. To keep life exciting we played baseball, hide and seek and watched television together. When I was bored, I used to pick on her and listen to her phone conversations, only to make her mad.

She would chase after me, try to hit me or tell my mom. It seemed like she was always getting me in trouble and my mom favored her. My other sister was much older. It seemed like she was always studying for school. I remember thinking, "I don't want to be like her and go to college. No way!"