I'm gonna be real and raw in tellin' this story...so please don't be offended cause there isn't any other way to tell the truth.
In early 1992 I met a girl named Alisa. Missy and I were at Fudd's shakin our thangs and causin' ruckus I'm sure...when we ran into these 2 girls. Alisa and Taraina. It was apparent that they weren't from 'round the way. There were not a lot of young, single black females in Waukesha back in 1992. We hung out all night....makin' small talk, they had just moved to the area, blase' blah...and at the end of the night Alisa asked for my number.
It went exactly like this.
'Um, so don't think I'm gay or nuthin'...not that u aren't fine girl...but we have not met a lot of cool girls out here and you are cool so let's hang out or something.'
I laughed so hard and knew we were gonna be fast friends.
'Alright...im cool with that.'
And so we did. All the time. Alisa's friend Taraina had moved out here for her job and Alisa had just left a nanny job out east and so when Taraina invited her to move with her, she agreed. What's funny is a few years later Taraina got married and moved to IL and Alisa felt stuck here.
For the next 7 years...Alisa was my road dog. My ace boon coon. My sister from another mister. We were together all the time. Most of my rough partying days were done with her at my side. The first time I did a lot of things....both good and bad...were with her at my side. We got into major trouble together, but always had each other's back. Every moment that Jordyn was with her dad...I was out with Alisa causing trouble. Many of my wildest moments occurred with this girl. Most club bouncers knew us by name. We often got into places free if we promised to keep the dancin going (why I never care about being the only one on the dance floor) and very rarely did we pay for a drink. Many a night I couldn't remember the next day.
Our friendship was much more than wild days though.
She was there when I moved out for the first time and was a little afraid to be on my own. She was there for me when I went through an abusive relationship. I was there for her when she got pregnant and gave birth. God mother to her daughter Ayesha. When I had to leave my apartment she opened up her apartment to me and we lived together for 8 months. When I got pregnant with Isaiah, she is the one who comforted me when it felt like others had abandoned me for making another mistake. When I met Marlon she pushed me to follow my heart. When I started going to church and accepted Christ...even though it wasn't her thing, she was happy for me.
Not too long after I got married in 1998...Alisa and her man and Ayesha moved to Pennsylvania. For many years...we kept in close touch by letters and pictures and phone calls. Every few months at least we'd talk...catch up...comfort each other. I had some marriage problems. She felt stuck. I went through severe depression. She had another daughter. I could tell she was using more than recreationally. After a few years...we started talking less often. She moved from Pennsylvania out to Washington by her mom. She didn't have a computer so email wasn't a way for us to communicate...and her phone was often getting shut off so I'd try to call and her number was disconnected. Soon it was once a year or so that I'd hear from her. She'd always ask a lot of questions about my life...but be very vague about hers. I knew something was up. I could feel it in my heart. I even asked her to move back a few times. She would laugh it off saying there was nothing for her here. The last time I heard from her was probably in like 2005 or 2006. Numbers that I had for her where long since not in service. My last letter was returned.
Since joining MySpace and Facebook...I looked for her on here endlessly. Hoping by some chance she now had a computer. No luck. Last fall I finally thought....duh, Ayesha would be old enough to have her own account and started searching for her. I'll never forget the day that I found her on MySpace. I was so excited. She knew who I was right away. Said how could she forget her Godmother. Asked how her Goddaddy and cousins were. Asked how life in WI was. Small talk. No pictures of her mom. I asked her to have her mom call me. Never happened. I asked her about her mom...very little info.
Today I found out the truth.She doesn't know where her mom is. She has been living on the streets and escaped from jail a few months ago. She has a myriad of problems. There is nothing they can do. The girls are living with their grandma.I can't explain the heartache I felt when I read that. I can't explain how my heart sank or why I started to cry so hard. While I think about Alisa often...it's been years since I've had contact with her. But the love of a sister...which we are...doesn't fade with time I guess. The longing to see her, know she is okay, reach out to her.... I asked Ayesha how I can help...she said there's nothing they can do so she guesses there's nothing I can do either.
But I can pray. And I can ask you to pray on their behalf.
Some of you know Alisa...some of you don't. Some of you might think, wow...that's deep, well--you make your bed, now you lie in it.
But I can't do that.
She's my girl. And my heart is breaking. In all of you...I trust you to pray.
So please pray with me....
Pray that Alisa is safe.
Pray that she returns to her family.
Pray that she would desire to get clean and sober and be there for her kids.
Pray that Ayesha and Tatiana are able to have influence of God's love in their life.
Pray that Alisa knows that people love her and that God loves her.
There is power in prayer.
To God be the glory.
