Having a child is hard for a sixteen year old girl. At first I was scared thinking about what my grandparents would do to me, so I hid my pregnancy for a few months. Everyone was telling me that I was getting fat. At that time, I had a best friend and I told her that I was pregnant. She promised she would keep my secret, but she went aned told everyone in the school. The whole town heard about it.

My grandmother called me and asked me if I was having a baby, and I told her no. That was a lie. I hid my belly until I was five months pregnant. When my grandparents found out, they put me out of the house and stoned me.

I had to stop going to school. I had nowhere to live. My mother was in the United States. I had no sisters or brothers and no one I could talk to. The child's father did not stand up to his responsibility, so I was alone as I carried the baby for nine months inside of me. The first time I felt the baby move, I felt very happy about it. Soon the child was born and I took care of her the best way I could.

Now my beautiful baby girl is grown up. She completed high school and went on to college. She works for the state of New Jersey as a caseworker. My life changed a lot, but it made me into a better person. My daughter gave me a reason to live my life. I have had four children and a beautiful granddaughter. My husband and I are very proud of them. I am in school now, hoping one day to get my GED and then a nursing degree.