My introduction_A glimpse into my life

Hi steemians! I am excited to be joining this community.

So… about me…

My usual introduction begins a little like this;

Hi, my name is Julie and I left the Kingston polygamous clan when I was 19 years old. That’s the introduction I give when I’m presenting to an audience. I want to give you fellow steemians a little more; I want to give you the parts I normally don’t talk about.

This is my uncle Paul Kingston. The current "prophet" of the Kingston group.
The image comes from Rolling Stones Magazine. I'll link the article below. It is a great read!

I was born into polygamy in the basement of my grandmothers home in Bountiful Utah. I did walk away from it when I was 19 years old. It was an amazing journey but also the hardest thing I’ve ever done… up to that point! I was getting to start completely over in life (with a car and $300). The world was my oyster. I looked forward to making my future everything I ever dreamed it could be.

This is my mom and I standing in the very spot where I was born 36 years later. We were on a paranormal ghost tour!

I met my husband two days after I left this group. He was an amazing person. He helped me through so much mentally and emotionally after I left the cult. I always told people that I left on my own physically but he helped me leave emotionally.

We clicked right away but there was one tiny problem. He was an LDS missionary. We spoke nearly every day during the final year of his mission and began dating as soon as he completed his two years. I was home in Utah and he went back home to Alabama. It was a whirlwind of a romance. A long distance romance, but I fell in love with this guy quickly and quite hard and I thought he did as well…

We were married in the LDS temple almost two years after we first met. It was the most exciting day of my life. As soon as we walked out the front doors of the beautiful and majestic Salt Lake City Temple his mask began to drop. Just seconds after we were man and wife I met the irritable and grumpy man that I would get to know all too well. The following day I got to meet the manipulative and controlling person that would spend the next 16 years of his life slowly tearing away at my soul and stripping away every part of me until I no longer recognized myself.

Fast forward to today…

Today, I am a single mom to two beautiful young kids. I walked away from that relationship in June of 2016. My husbands life quickly began to crumble. He lost everything. He lost his family. He lost his job. He was in a serious depression (he was bipolar) and he gave up. He took his life in January of this year.

My awesome little family

I find myself starting over once again in life. This new beginning is a bit more stressful, to say the least, but I can truly start over. I realize that almost two decades ago when I left the cult I wasn’t starting over. I walked right into a situation just like the one I had left. A situation that was much more harmful because it was one-on-one rather than the previous experience where a small handful of "leaders" oversaw thousands.

I have had people tell me over the years that I need to write my story. It never felt like the right time. I knew I had to leave that relationship because it was just an extension of the cult. I had to leave all manipulation and control behind before I could write. That relationship was a huge part of my story; the story that no one knew. The part of my life that I kept secret, even from my closest friends and family members.

So, Steemians, I am ready to write my story! I’m ready to bare my soul. Share the deepest and darkest parts of my life but I won’t leave out the fun, entertaining, and exciting. I do choose to focus on the positive.

For the first time in my life, the world is truly my oyster!

This life is finally mine and I’m going to enjoy every part of it that I can. I remember the strength and energy that that 19 year old girl had when she walked away from everything and everyone she ever knew and I tap into that energy often. I am going to take that strength as well as all the knowledge I have gained from my experiences into mine and my children's futures!

*image credit:http://www.billfrymire.com

I want to share stories from my past and my present. I will include topics, such as polygamy, religion, mental illness, personality disorders, grief, and parenting (specifically kids who have been through trauma). For the lighter days; because they can't all be this heavy, I want to be a part of the community with photography, health, science, travel, food, and just interesting and fun experiences.

Join me on this journey of healing as I navigate through the waters, rediscover myself, and help my children discover their own unique path. I look forward to being a part of this wonderful community.

I have to thank @arbitrarykitten for introducing me to steemit and for convincing me that it would be the perfect platform to share my story!

References
http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/inside-the-order-one-mormon-cults-secret-empire-20110615