Return to Normal

I’m sure we can all agree that there is no universal standard for a "normal life." For those who were born into a generational cycle of trauma, there may not be a known baseline of "normal" to return to, but it is still something almost mythical that they yearn for. This is why one of the most common desires we hear from exploited women is their desperation to “just have a normal life.”

Angel* looks around and sees others with kind marriages and maybe a child or two. She fantasies about a job at a shop where she can earn an income and pleasantly chat with customers as they come and go. She wants a mundane Saturday to run errands, to shop for groceries and cleaning supplies. She wants to get home and realize she forgot to buy bananas, not because her mind was riddled with worry, but because she got distracted gathering ingredients for a spontaneous baking project.

Angel doesn’t daydream of a frivolous kind of life; she believes in being frugal. But, one day she hopes to shop with a budget that allows her enough money to cover the essentials and also that container of ice cream-- just because she wants it. She wants to sleep without a weapon nearby or a chair blocking the door. She wants the security to put down emotional and physical roots in a community, without worrying when the next escape will be necessary. She wants to be able to go to the doctor when she has the flu, instead of worrying that the sharp pain she’s experiencing will force her to an emergency room, compounding her exposure and her debt.

Angel wants freedom. She wants the luxury of boredom. She wants a normal life.

This is the kind of normalcy you can provide for the women we work with who have been exploited. This is the kind of normalcy that makes room for a newly empowered woman to dream and to reclaim a life of dignity, stability, and freedom. Through the restorative power of healthy community at our Freedom Centers and the classes and services provided there, we are replacing trauma with beautiful normalcy.

When donating to a cause as complex as human trafficking, it’s hard to know that your generosity is actually going to make a difference in the lives of those who need it most. Not Abandoned empowers freedom for exploited women in the darkest places around the world, so that your donations actually change the destiny of a woman’s life.