Yesterday I stood beside the casket of the man one of my sisters loved with all her heart, and watched in agony as she bid him farewell. She spoke to him from her heart. She whispered in his ear, stroked his hair, kissed his lips. I had promised myself and my sister that I would be there for her support, but for a few moments, my mind was reeling at the love and strength that I saw. My sister was clothed in a snazzy skirt and heels, but when I looked at her through my overflowing eyes, I saw her gleaming in armor. My sister was a warrior of love and grief, and she conquered both.

For months now, I have been reading and researching warriors, and battles, and bravery. I have written on my heart the names of women and men who have given their lives for a cause they believed in. I have found myself amazed, stunned, frightened, breathless, and occasionally filled with a sense of wild exhiliration. From the time that Joshua fought the battle of Jericho, history is chock-full of warriors who have laid down life and lance for what they believed in. I have no concrete reason for this research, beyond the fact that I felt compelled to do it. But this evening it hit me that I have been surrounded by warriors my entire life, and that I carry a sizable shield myself.

I rose before the sun on the morning we were to bury my sisters' husband, determined to steal just a few moments to myself....to sort my thoughts and catch my breath, and to raise a few fervent prayers for the day ahead. Text messages were buzzing in from friends and family, as were email messages from the office and school.....all of which I successfully ignored until just one caught my eye. With a racing heart and turning stomach, I read a message that informed me that my ex-husband had somehow stolen a photo from my Facebook page, and posted it on his own. A photo of two of my children, both his former victims....a photo I had snapped in my very own kitchen on Easter morning of this year. I realize that the phrase, "I feel violated" is often used as a punchline these days. That aside, there is no other term that can more aptly describe my reaction.

Once upon a time I described myself as a victim of domestic violence. Then....after time (and extensive therapy and soul-searching) I called myself a survivor. Both statements are factual. But I write this tonight as a warrior - a warrior against domestic violence, yes. But more specifically, I am waging a war against the man who bestowed upon me those titles, the monster I continue to fight, and the sociopath who sees nothing wrong with stealing and posting photos of his former victims.

The day will come when the state of Washington will decree that said monster is permitted to be in the same room with my innocent, precocious, larger-than-life daughter Penelope. Parental rights aside, Penelope has done nothing to deserve such treatment. She has never been exposed to evil or depravity. She thinks that rainbows are real, that Santa Claus is in the nearest chimney, and that my kisses truly heal all boo-boos. She loves and adores a man that she calls Daddy of her own accord, and he is not the creep who claims her as if she is a piece of furniture. Her tenacity and her intelligence are inspiring, and I will never stop swinging on her behalf.

I have a nine-year old son who still flinches if you reach for him too quickly. I have a nine-year old daughter who cannot bear to be startled. I cannot stand the smell of vanilla, the sound of rap music, or any surprise that is orchestrated outside of my knowledge. I have a costly and ridiculous security system on my house that I activate nightly, and years worth of sleepless nights that I have logged, checking and re-checking locks and watching out darkened windows.

There was a time when I wanted nothing more than to bury my story. Those were the days when I still assumed the shame of what was done to me, and to my children. But here's the scoop...I didn't ask to be abused, nor did my children. We were conned....manipulated...bamboozled, if you will. And now our warrior eyes are wide open, and trained on the one person responsible.

I ask you this, and only this. Read our story. Post it. And post it again. I know that I am not the only woman or mother in this position, but perhaps I am the only warrior brave enough to speak the truth.

There was a time when I woke every morning to look into the face of abuse and cruelty and deception. I am sharing my story because I swore to myself some time ago that I would not allow any other innocent women and children to suffer. As Yehuda Bauer once said, and as I remind myself every day, "Thou shalt not be a victim, thou shalt not be a perpetrator, but, above all, thou shalt not be a bystander.”