Priceless Inspirations (21 page)

No way.

Meanwhile, my friendship with Memphitz continued to grow. When the time was right for both of us, we finally took our three and half year friendship to the next level. We got engaged and are planning to marry soon.

I’m happy.

I can tell you, it’s wonderful to be in love again. I feel very secure about this relationship because it grew so slowly. We really know each other and neither one of us was swept away in a big fairy tale kind of romance. We love each other because we’re friends first, and lovers second. He’s good to my daughter. He treats her like one of his own kids. My daughter loves him and is happy, too.

I’m not expecting happily ever after, but I do expect we’ll work together to build a good life.

I wish the same for you.

Toya’s Priceless Gem: When you really love and trust yourself, you won’t accept less than real love and trust in your relationships. If your relationships aren’t working, he’s only half the problem. The other half is you, and you’re the one you need to love the most
.

Afterwords

Since we started doing
Tiny and Toya
, people have been asking me:

“When you gonna write that book, Toya?”

“Where can I get your book?”

I knew I wanted to write a book, but it seemed like a pretty big undertaking. Even though I’ve been through some stuff in my life, stuff that people seemed to be able to relate to, I didn’t want to just talk about myself. I wanted to try to write something that meant something to young girls and women out there who might be going through some of the same things, and feeling some of the same feelings that I felt.

I hope I’ve been able to do that because even if your name isn’t “Antonia”, you ARE priceless. If anybody says otherwise, you send ‘em to me.

Love,

Toya

Special Thanks and Acknowledgements

Before I thank anyone else for all of their help and assistance in getting this book written, I want to thank God. Without Him giving me the experiences I’ve had and giving me the ideas He did, this book would not have been possible.

Secondly, I have to thank my daughter, Reginae. You are my princess, my reason for being, and my everything. Thank you for being you and always know that I love you. I owe many thanks to my family. I thank my mom and dad for giving me life and my Aunt Edwina and my Uncle Frank for raising me to be the strong woman that I am today and for constantly pushing me to do better. My sincere thanks go to Nathaniel Holden for always being my rock, and for being the consistent man in my life throughout the years. Even though he had his own family, he always made room for me and he was always there, trying to steer me toward the right, even when I wanted to go left. I also am grateful to his wife, Kristalyn Holden, for always being an ear for me and always listening and offering support.

Cheryl Washington, I thank you for being for such a good big sister/cousin to me. Then there’s Kathy Williams, Frank Holden, Jr., and all of the Holden family for accepting me like a little sister and always looking out for me. Thanks go to all of my brothers and sisters—we’ve lost a lot of time, but all of you have embraced the whole situation and I’m looking forward to a bright future. Many thanks also go to Jacida Carter, Dwayne Carter and the Carter family for their love and support through the years. I also want to thank my grandmother, Helen, for teaching me the importance of having tough skin, and to my grandfathers, Tillman and George, and my other grandmother, Jackie, for connecting me to my history.

Thanks and love to my friend, Danielle, for showing me what true friendship is all about. You truly are the best. My friend, Lydia, has been extremely helpful and, of course, I can’t forget my “Glam Squad,” LaTasha Wright and Rikya Taylor, who make sure that I always have the right look for every event and occasion.

I also want to thank James Dubose, my new brother, for believing in me when nobody else did. My love and thanks to Tiny for being such a good friend, and to all of the fans for watching
Tiny and Toya
and making it such a success. My attorney, Uwanda Carter, was extremely helpful too in seeing this project through to completion, as well as all of the people at Farrah Gray Publishing, especially Dr. Farrah Gray, Shannon Leon and Karyn Folan for all of their help with getting this project out of my head, onto paper and into bookstores.

And last, but not least, thanks to Mickey Wright, Jr. for being the love of my life, and for understanding me and accepting my daughter as his own. I love you dearly.

The
New York Times
Bestselling Memoir of a Little Boy’s Nightmarish Life of Abuse

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Dave Pelzer was a victim of severe and torturous abuse at the hands of his own mother. The outside world knew nothing of his living nightmare. He had nothing but his dreams to keep him alive—dreams that someday, someone would love him and call him “son.”

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