Has a family member or someone you trust ever hugged you or touched you in a way that made you feel uncomfortable? Or kissed you in a way that was totally inappropriate? How did you react? How did it make you feel?

Recently I watched a talk show on sexual abuse. It was a very emotional show and I found myself blinking back tears many times. I felt sad for the many silent victims of sexual abuse, who feel that they have no one to turn and for those who in fact may not realize what's right and what's wrong.
If you've ever felt uncomfortable because of the way someone touched you but weren't sure if you should have been, here are a few things to beware of. No one, male or female should:
· touch you under your clothes.
· give you open mouth kisses on the lips.
· ask you to touch him/her on his/her private parts
· become upset if you ask him/her not to touch you in a way which makes you feel uncomfortable.

If someone does any of these things to you and refuses to stop when asked you need to talk to an adult that you trust. In many cases abusers try to make victims feel as if no one will believe them or no one cares for them. However, you gotta trust someone! If someone is hurting you, take a chance talk to your mother or father, a teacher, a guidance counselor or someone you trust who can help you. Talk until someone listens. You are a priceless gift from God and you deserve to be treated as such.

I visited a church in Nassau over my Easter vacation. The pastor used a twenty- dollar bill to illustrate a point during his sermon. He crumbled it up and then asked, "What's the value of this bill?" The answer was that, even though it was wrinkled and creased, it was still worth twenty dollars.
His point was, no matter what you go through in life, you may have been abused or hurt by people who were supposed to take care of you but you are still valuable, priceless, unique, precious, special… - and don't ever forget it.