A Penny on the Train Tracks

Although this is a fictional story, it is loosely based on my own past and present. It is the product of a pipe dream that has often made me think about who I am and how I got here. Happy with "Who I Am", some of the memories of  "Who I Was" often makes me think "What if I found someone back then? Someone who would have been to me, what I have become to so many others… Someone to look up to. Someone to lean on. Someone to learn from…

A special thanks go out to my family and friends for their support and help while writing this story. Without you all, I would really have no need or desire to write it at all. Even better, many of those who have become my family over the years (and they know who they are) are also the ones I have taken under my wing in the past. Knowing how my just "Being there" for them when they needed someone, and now looking at the adults they have become or are becoming, fills me with a pride that is unmatched. Today, no longer beneath my wing but, flying strong on their own. I wouldn’t change a thing…

I also dedicate this story to a close friend of mine. One who has dedicated a great portion of his adult life making the same decisions I have. One who has taken the same oath that "No harm shall come to yee, 'less the harm wants it’s butt kicked!" He is now the protector of a youth in his own family who desperately needed just that. Also an author of stories filled with hope and happy endings… Something we both work so hard at creating for all those connected to our lives. I am proud to know you and honored to call you friend.

Lastly, (and certainly not least) I owe a huge amount of thanks and gratitude to my "Family" in our reader's forum. On a daily basis, they have encouraged me to continue on with my writing. A.Christopher for giving me a home for my work in the beginning, "ACfan & Akeentia" for working with me every step of the way then and now building a home for my ramblings and "The Story Lover" for the tireless work he puts in, to make my rough typing readable. "I love you all, and could never thank you enough!"