This was just gut wrenching to read. I could only read a little bit at a time, then take a break and play with Cora or watch a funny show or something because it is just HEAVY.
I remember when she was kidnapped. It was during a string of highly publicized kidnappings, including one in Orange County. All those little girls were found dead within a few weeks. So when Elizabeth was found alive 9 months later, it was amazing. I had always been morbidly curious about what had happened in that black hole of time that she was gone.
She was taken from her home in the middle of the night. That is terrifying. He knew he wanted to take her 7 months before he actually did, and he took advantage of her parents' kindness and willingness to help him get employment by working on their house. I wonder if they have forgiven themselves for that. She had to endure more than anyone should have to endure, all by a man who used his facade as a prophet to take advantage of her and try to brainwash her. Her description of Mitchell and Barzee are so creepy. She says that he can turn off and on his "prophetic" phases at the drop of a hat, which means he is a master manipulator. He knew what he was doing, and he wasn't insane. He was just a pedophile who used that as an excuse to "take a wife".
What is really amazing is that she kept her wits about her. She always thought of her family, and hoped that they thought of her. After a while she assumed that they thought she was dead and had moved on, but she never stopped hoping that they at least thought of her from time to time.
She never lost her faith in God. THAT is amazing. She had some amazing experiences where she felt God's love so strongly, and she knew that she would make it out of this experience alive. I think that it was this faith that inspired her to manipulate Mitchell to go back to Utah (I never knew they were in San Diego for 6 months?!), and to hitchhike. They had to keep her face uncovered, which is what I'm sure helped her be discovered.
I couldn't help but get teary during her description of her reunion with her family. I can't imagine the anxiety of her parents. While reading it, I made Brandon swear he wouldn't hire random people off the street to work on their house. Now that we have a daughter, I couldn't imagine hearing that she had been violated every day for 9 months, and was forced to do unspeakable things. She leaves a lot of gaps in things she had to see and do (for good reason!), and I don't even want to know what that could have meant.
Her strength since being rescued is amazing. She graduated high school and college, I think I remember hearing she wanted to go to law school, she served a mission in Paris, and got married. That man who married her has to be a saint. There must be some sort of baggage there after that sort of ordeal. She has created and runs a foundation to help children who are victims of abduction and child abuse. What is amazing is that she was able to sit in the courtroom and testify against Mitchell and Barzee. She didn't flinch in describing her trauma, and was able to help put them away. I'm glad they were sentenced to life in prison.
What is ALSO amazing is that she was able to get past everything without professional counseling. How is that possible? She clarifies that she does not think that is the path for everyone, but that she was able to get past it without counseling. She is really a stronger person than I could possibly imagine, and as she said in the book I believe that God will make that time of trial up to her in the long run.
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