My Troubled Past - An Inspiring True Story (Growing up in a warzone)

By: E. J Peters, Sarah Louise Rosmond

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

Northern Ireland during the late 60s and 70s was a war zone. The riots and fights between the Protestants and Catholics caused so much harm and destruction that would devastate Ireland for years to come. The bloodiest rioting was in Belfast, where seven people were killed and hundreds more wounded. Hundreds of houses, most of them owned by Catholics, as well as businesses and factories were burned out. In addition, thousands of mostly Catholic families were driven from their homes. Growing up with all of this going on around me from the day I was born, should have been the worst part about growing up during “The Troubles”. But it wasn’t, and I can say that it did not help in anyway but the truth of it was that my own troubles started from the sweet age of five when my innocence was taken away from me, by a man I should have been able to put my trust in... I should never have had witnessed half of the things that I have, and I should never have known what sexual abuse was, but I did. Being abused is a cycle that is hard to break, especially if it is one of the main things that you have been taught from a young impressionable age. I do not have one abuser, but many as I found it hard to break that cycle of abuse and self-doubt. I do find myself lucky though because I know a lot of people who had it as bad, if not worse than me during their time in the grasp of “The Troubles”. Belfast was a scary place to live at the best of times, but even scarier for an impressionable child...