ÐÓ°ÉÐÔ°É

Dear Pastor,

I am only 17 years old, but I would like to tell you about something that happened to me.

I was living with my parents until I was nine years old. My oldest sister asked my mother to send me to live with her. I was very excited, because she lived in Kingston and she is a teacher. I came to Kingston and lived with my sister and her husband. They did not have children. My sister treated me well and took me everywhere she went. She even got me an American visa and she took me there with her. I did well in high school; everybody knew me to be her daughter.

When I was about 14, her husband asked me for sex and I was very surprised. I told him he is like a father to me, so I did not expect that from him. He said he was only testing me. He begged me not to say anything to my sister, so I did not; he never asked me again. But when I was 16, I went home to my mother to spend some time with her and when it was time for me to go back to Kingston, my sister's husband came for me. He was in St James on business, so my sister agreed that he should pick me up and take me home.

When he picked me up, he started to play some reggae songs and he told me that he still loves me and he was begging me to have sex with him. I started to tremble. I was sitting in the front and he started to rub my legs. It started to rain and he pulled into a road and it was very dark. The rain was pouring down. He forced me to have sex with him. I was a virgin and I cried a lot. He told me he would give me anything I wanted. When it stopped raining, we drove off and headed to Kingston. I made up my mind that I would tell my sister that her husband raped me. But I held my peace; I said nothing. I thanked Heaven that he did not get me pregnant. My sister asked me how I have become so quiet and I told her nothing. One day she asked me, "Did my husband trouble you?" I told her no, and she said "If he troubles you, you should tell me" but I told her nothing like that.

This man is so good to me. He secretly gives me money. Now I am 17 and he tells me that I should not have a boyfriend, but I am interested in having one. I asked my sister if I can have a boyfriend and she said yes. Do you think I should tell my sister what I went through when her husband picked me up? I only had sex with him once, but I regret it so much. I would love you to give me your advice.

B.T.

Dear B.T.,

I know you were afraid to tell you sister that her husband raped you. He has watched you grow up in his house.

Evidently he was always hoping to have the opportunity to have sex with you. When he picked you up and was taking you home, and it was raining, he felt that was the ideal time to sexually abuse you. He is a wicked brute.

Perhaps the time will come when you will feel safe and have the courage to tell your sister about your ordeal. You are 17 now, I am sure your sister would love to see you go to university and have a career. Perhaps if you were to tell her now, she would say that you have to go back to your mother and that may spoil the opportunity to go on to university.

Learn to protect yourself from this man. If you were to tell your sister now what transpired, she would want to know why you took so long to tell her. This man will deny everything. So I am not encouraging you to say anything now. But you dare not trust this man at all.

Pastor