Jail Bait

About the Book

It all began in the year of nineteen fifty six in a small town called Gallatin, Tennessee. During the early years of my life, I lived with my Great Grandmother and my Uncle. We lived on a farm in Odom Bend. It was there that I learned valuable lessons from my great grandmother. Family values along with good work ethics were instilled in me as young girl.

The many things that I experienced and learned have shaped my true character and I reflect on those things often. I value the small things in life more than the big things. Something as simple as the sun shining through my window that wakes me from a good sleep reminds me of my days on that farm. When I hear the sounds of birds chirping it lets me know that it is time to start my day. I value the simple sound of the rain hitting the gutters because it brings back memories of being on the farm. I guess I am just a simple, country girl that enjoys the little things that others may take for granted.

During the many transitions of my life I have long aspired to have a life of love, joy and peace. I was certain that my foundation was quite strong, but I often doubted myself. I left the country farm life and went to live with my mother in the city. I entered into what I thought was a different world. I was still a simple little country girl that was faced with a very different way of living. The bright lights in the big city caught my attention. I felt the freedom from the sound of the music that was playing when walking down the street. The laughter of the people, and the way they looked; deep down inside as a young girl I wanted to be just like them. I struggled to adjust with this transition and lack of a transitional period. I had to get in where I didn’t quite fit in.

As a teenager I was lead astray by what I have learned to be my doubtful way of thinking, my lack of confidence, low self-esteem and the many pressures within my environment. I began to have conflicts with people in school, family members, and people in my community. I was acting out and this caused problems with my relationship with my mother. We seemed to have the most conflict. I was growing up too fast is what I was often told. I felt I was just having fun with the people I thought to be my friends. Soon my life took another turn. I became impregnated at the age of thirteen and gave birth to my son.

Becoming a mother at a young age took a toll on my life. It was a major event that caused me to spiral out of control. I didn’t have the tools to be a good mother at that time. It was a difficult time for me as well as my family. We have a huge situation to deal with. I knew I was absolutely no help financially or emotionally and this added to the stress I was already running from. I loved my son from the first time I felt him kicking in the womb, but that wasn’t enough to over turn what was going on inside me. My issues had become so deep that I became disconnected with my foundation. My mother took on responsibility for my son and I turned to a life of turmoil that continued for more than twenty five years.

The street life is what I turned to. With no education I built relationships with people that knew the tricks of the trade. I shared an odd bond with these people since I was able to relate to them because of similar issued we shared. I was running in search o something I had no way of recognizing. I felt that if I run away from my problems I wouldn’t have to face them. I was literally losing control of what I have known and valued about myself. I never completely loss touch with what shaped my true character, but it was getting harder for me to focus on the little things that brought me joy. I was going through so much at such a young age. I was doing what I had to do to just make it from day to day. The lifestyle I lived none of this was taught to me at home. I didn’t even like to drink to get drank! Drugs came along. Then I began to look dirty, and didn’t lik

About the Author

Di’Anne Carey Miller was born August 22, 1948 in Gallatin, Tennessee. She grew up in Indianapolis, Indiana. George Washington Carver, and Booker T. Washington was the name of the grade schools she attended, and Crispus Attucks High School. Her fascination with an area called twenty first street led her to become a teenage mother at the age of fourteen. The penal system was the only lifestyle she knew for twenty five years. This led to a life of only destruction. You have got to be an over comer. Today I’m happily married with an occupation as a Cosmetology instructor.