This is a story about Lisa, a girl born into a situation that no child deserves, with a family that no child should have.
Every day, tens of thousands of children are abused inside their homes – this is something that is not tolerable at all. And this is not just a story about Lisa, It also touches her brother. And to be honest, it touches every child in the world who suffers quietly.
Lisa was born in a suburb of London in 2004.
The family already had a boy, Lisa’s older brother, John, who was a year old when Lisa was born.
It wasn’t long before Lisa and John found themselves in a foster family, the welfare authorities determined that their biological parents could not take care and give them what they needed.
But after several years with their new family, Lisa became a victim of sexual abuse by her stepfather.
As a result, Lisa and John returned to live with their biological parents.
But the biological mother didn’t want to take care of Lisa, she saw her more as a problem, as a nuisance. Despite the fact that Lisa was only 6 years old, her mother thought her behavior was inappropriate, that she was behaving sexually. As a result, she decided to ‘educate’ her, in a physical way, rather than show her love and concern.
John was regularly beaten, but it was Lisa who received the toughest punishment.
As the years passed, the situation only got worse. It got so bad that Lisa could not take part in the gymnastics classes at school. She didn’t dare to change clothes in front of her classmates so that they would not see the scars and blue marks that covered her entire body.
The family’s social worker called from time to time, but because the mother told her that the situation in the family was excellent, she did not come to check by herself. The abuse continued, and the situation only got worse.
It got to the point where Lisa was a victim of kicks and punches. Worse, sometimes she was beaten with musical instruments, iron pipes, a hammer.. Her father even used a machete once. In addition to the physical abuse, Lisa’s mother used her body as a canvas for abusive words.
She would humiliate Lisa with words like ‘whore’, ‘tramp’, ‘freak’.
Lisa was weak, and her health was starting to deteriorate, she was hungry and thin. Her brother sometimes tried to sneak her food into the room, but when they caught him he would get beaten up as well. But the violence against him was not as severe as the violence against Lisa.
In one case, Lisa’s mother hit her so hard that the bones in her hand were broken.
After the mother was hospitalized with a broken hand, welfare authorities began to suspect.
During a visit two weeks after the incident, the social worker met John. He was well dressed and his hair was combed. But she knew something was wrong. When John was asked where his little sister was, he just shook his head.
After a short time, the social worker left home. But she came back again, this time with the police.
They searched the dirty house, but only when they found a closet, opened its doors and looked inside, did find something that no one of them will never forget..
Inside the closet, lying in the feces and urine of herself, was Lisa. Her body was in such a bad condition that she could barely stand on her feet.
The young girl was rushed to the hospital. There the doctors did their best to save her. But Lisa’s body gave up.
When she was in the hospital she didn’t say a word. She passed away after three days, at the age of 9.
The cause of death remains a mystery. Many believe it was from a lack of love and warmth. She had no reason to live, so she let herself go.
Police then conducted another search of the home to gather evidence against the parents. There they found a crumpled note under her pillow.
The note read:
“What did I do wrong? All I ever wanted was for Mom and Dad to love me. Just like my classmates’ parents love them. I don’t know why I never died. I always tried to be polite, and do what Mom told me. But always I was a disappointment, and children like me do not deserve to live.”
Lisa’s parents were convicted and sentenced to lengthy prison terms. John has moved on to a new family, one that loves him and is willing to give him everything a child needs.
Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about Lisa. Lisa has suffered disappointment after disappointment, at the hands of her family, welfare authorities, her school and her foster family.
Every child deserves to be loved. Despite this, children all over the world are being abused. Every second, every minute, and every hour of the day.
A child has the right to live in a home free of violence. He needs love, care and attention – something as simple as a hug can have a much greater meaning than you imagine.
Please share the story. Let’s spread it in the hope that it will make a difference.
