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Chapter 1
Early Childhood
I lived in Bedford, Virginia when I was first born. I
was a happy healthy baby. When I was six months
old, I could say, “Dada” and when I was one year old,
I could walk and count howmany blocks were falling.
I started staying with a retired English teacher when
I was three months old. This woman kept both her
granddaughter and me. I called her, “Memaw”. We
all three did a lot of fun stuff together. We played
in the swimming pool, we watched Barney on T.V.,
and we took walks. One time we walked over to her
neighbor’s house, I put my hands in his bushes, and
a bee stung me. I have never gotten over that fear
since then. I could count how many horses and cows
were in the field near my babysitter’s house because I
could say my ABC’s and 123’s when I was a little more
than one year old. Another time my babysitter’s cat
scratched me. I have always had a fear of cats after
that. I nicknamed my babysitter’s cat, “Peniecia”. I
used to talk to my parents about Peniecia at my house
a lot. My parents thought that it was an imaginary
friend that I was talking about. They later realized
that I gave my babysitter’s cat a nickname. I stayed
with this woman for three years.