GRANDMOTHER'S LIBRARY: "Life in Spite of Me" by Kristen Anderson

     I heard this gal give a talk (on the radio) and was compelled to read her whole story.  Kristen was a semi rebellious teen from a good family who decided to kill herself by laying down on the tracks in front of a train: the only thing she succeeded in doing was losing both her legs.

     This book is her story of her miraculous survival and her soul searching which led her to develop a personal relationship with Jesus. She came from a good home and was a Christian, but she apparently didn't realize that she was a daughter of Heavenly Father.

     Keep a box of tissues on hand as you read this touching story!  She tells of the loneliness she felt as a teen, the reasons she decided to take her life, and her long road to recovery.  She talked about the doubts she felt and the anger.  Kristen then talks about people who introduced her to Christ as she never knew Him before.  She decided that she had been spared for a reason, and founded "Reaching You Ministries" which tries to tell people that they have a Heavenly Father who loves them.  She said that had she known that she was loved, she may not have tried to take her life.  She even received an email from one young man who told her that he had had a gun in his hand and was about to take his life when he happened to hear her telling her story on Oprah.  He told Kristen that hearing her story saved his life.  That was one of the testimonies that let her to begin her "Reaching You Ministries."

     Kristen apparently suffered from depression.  This book gives the signs of depression and the warning signs of suicide so that we may recognize them if we see them in friends or loved ones.It is a wonderful, uplifting story.  Kristen has made a wonderful life for herself  'In Spite of Her'.