My Mother Kicked Me Out of the Church for Getting Pregnant Out of Wedlock

I think I talked to myself for almost an hour while different scenarios played out in my mind. All of them resulted in my mother not speaking to me.

I was certain she’d never accept my baby.

I spent the next few days hiding in my room, coming up with every excuse I could think of to avoid facing Mama.

“Faith, honey! Dinner’s ready!” she called out one evening.

“Sorry, Mama, got this huge psychology paper due tomorrow,” I shouted back. “I’ll grab something later!”

The next morning, she knocked on my door. “Baby girl, I made your favorite pancakes.”

“Thanks, but I already ate a granola bar. Got an early study group meeting,” I lied, feeling guilty about the growing pile of excuses.

That evening, she tried again. “Faith? Mrs. Jones brought over her famous casserole…”

“Got finals coming up, Mama. Need to focus!” I called out.

By Thursday, Mama wasn’t having it anymore. She marched right up to my room and stood in the doorway.

“Now hold on just a minute,” she said, fixing me with that mom-stare that could melt steel. “Since when do you skip my pancake breakfasts? And don’t think I haven’t noticed you running to the bathroom every morning.”

“Just stressed about exams,” I mumbled, avoiding her gaze.

“Uh-huh,” she said, clearly unconvinced. “And I suppose stress is also why you haven’t touched your coffee in days? The same coffee you swear you can’t live without?”