Sorry, but this isn't a chapter/story. This is a college essay my English 12 teacher wanted my class to write. I really want all of your opinions. PLEASE REVIEW! It's short because it can't be more than 500 words…

My Guardian Angel

My early childhood has always been a little hazy, but what I'll always remember is how my parents treated my brother and me. I can still see my father hitting me just because I forgot to push the button that turned on the dryer. I remember the meals consisting of pudding and macaroni and cheese that my mother gave us that contributed to me gaining weight when I was younger. My mother and father were separated then since I was about two years old. Their divorce was finalized when I was sixteen.

Nobody in my family really knows of when my father was hitting me. Truthfully, it was my brother's job to do the clothes. I was only about five years old while my brother was nine. We were the ones expected to clean my father's house from top to bottom. I can still picture me and my brother, Joe, on our hands and knees scrubbing our dining room floor. Looking back, I felt like Cinderella then, waiting for someone to come and rescue me.

My mother was living with her boyfriend when Joe and I went over there. My mother never cooked and her boyfriend, Darren, hated me. Joe was always responsible for babysitting me and cooking me dinner. Since he was only ten, he only knew how to make macaroni and cheese. When I was about six, my small Shih Tzu jumped on my lap while I was sitting on the couch. Once Darren saw, he screamed and slapped me across the face for letting the dog on the couch. That house was never clean because no one ever took care of it.

The state of how we were being raised caught the attention of social workers. No one in my family knows who told them about our living conditions. Eventually, while my mother and Darren were at work, my grandmother and aunt told me and Joe to pick our favorite things to go to our grandma's. I took my stereo and Barbie dolls while my brother grabbed his Game Cube along with some games.

My grandmother fought for my brother and I in court, but our parents didn't even show up so my grandmother gained custody that would last for ninety days. When she went back to court, and our parents still didn't show up, my grandmother officially had full custody. Ever since I moved in with my grandma and grandpa, I considered them my parents. My grandmother and I would always say that she was my mother, grandmother, and godmother.

We created our own traditions like when she would give me one present on Christmas Eve for being her godmother. She encouraged me to start a collection of angels so I could talk to them and ray to them at night. She always pushed me to do my best in school, helping me achieve honors. The day that my world went crashing down was when she passed away from lung cancer when I was sixteen. I held her hand as I saw her pass away. Now, I know that she is watching over me and I know that no matter what, she will always be my guardian angel.

PLEASE TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK! REVIEW!