Etched in Sand

This story begins on Long Island, where five young siblings lived constantly on the brink of survival. Their mother, known as Cookie, moved them from place to place, often leaving them hungry, unwashed, and worried about when the next beating might unfold.

From cramped cars to temporary apartments, the siblings rarely felt safe. Yet the oldest girls tried to create a sense of family in every new space. Whenever circumstances forced them apart, it often felt more painful than the bruises or the cold nights.

Told primarily through the eyes of one of the older siblings, this account reveals the children’s resolve to protect each other no matter what. Their loyalty was unshakable, even as they experienced emotional neglect and brutal forms of discipline.

In these pages, you’ll see how the children clung to small moments of hope: a kind social worker, a teacher’s approval, or a stretch of quiet time spent reading at the library. These fleeting glimpses of normalcy helped them believe in a brighter future.

From birth, each sibling faced relentless instability. Cookie had a pattern of rage fueled by alcohol, vanishing for days on end, then returning with new boyfriends or new plans that rarely lasted. The children learned to expect sudden uprooting at any time.

Though the siblings were scattered in age, they bonded over shared neglect. They scavenged for food, rummaged through dumpsters, and sometimes sneakily “borrowed” items from stores just to make it through the week.

Escaping their mother’s fury was equally essential. They might find refuge in a friend’s basement or behind an abandoned building when Cookie came home in a drunken rage. Each day was a race against her unpredictable mood swings.

Still, they developed a resourcefulness that defied their young ages. From washing clothes in cold water to consoling a younger sibling through tears, they showed remarkable maturity long before it should have been necessary.