Represent Magazine

• Taking the Risk to Trust

  by Nathalea Sky

  When I entered foster care at 16, I felt confused. The adults around me saw me as a child all over again. Now, I had a curfew. I had to obey the rules set by my agency and my foster mother.

• Learning to Trust Myself

  by Anonymous

  Names have been changed.  Growing up, I believed my family was a close one. My siblings and I spent time together, and we  traveled every year to new places as a family. We lived in an apartment in East Harlem and I felt comfortable living with my parents, who mostly seemed to care for me. 

• Finding Luck

  by Rylynn

  “I’m sorry for your loss,” Luck said sadly, patting my shoulder.  The February air was cold and the trees bare. I brushed wet leaves from the damp picnic table and laid my backpack across it like a casket. I unzipped the backpack and pulled out the battered black Chromebook, covered in scratches from my dogs.

• War Transformed Our Family

  by V. T.

  Growing up, everyone in my family was afraid of my mom. When she got angry, she would turn into a tiger. She’d scream loudly, and her voice turned throaty and scary. Sometimes, she even hit my younger sister and me.  Dad would also avoid mom when she wasn’t in a good mood.

• Home in My Heart

  by Arina Limarieva

  When I was 5, I had lived my whole life in Luhansk, Ukraine. Then, in April 2014, Russia  invaded Luhansk and another nearby region, Donetsk. Russia declared them independent states and renamed them Donetsk People’s Republic and Luhansk People’s Republic.   These name changes are part of how the Russian government tries to erase the Ukrainian identities of people who live there.

• Accepting My Mom’s Limits

  by R.P.

  When I was 8 years old, I asked my mother why I’d never met her parents. She said, “My dad was a very cruel man, and every night, he would come into my room and do terrible things to me. My mother knew, and she did nothing to help me.”