My name is Tracy Petrocelli. I am not a man of any real importance. I'm just a simple person who needs the help of the entire world right now. I have often heard that we are a nation (the USA ) that take care of our own and that we are kind, generous and just. But I can only speak on my own life.

I came into the world unwanted . As a baby I was beaten and abandoned and left to die. I never knew my mother or father or any family members, or if I had any. All I had in the world was my name. I grew up in Illinois and knew only a hard life. I had come into the world where, as a orphan, I only knew what it was like to be teased - where, it seemed, everyone had family and a place to belong; and where I was made to feel ashamed - merely an orphan, a second rate citizen. I was lucky to know my name and that I am of Italian descent. I didn't complain about the hand God dealt me because it seemed as if this was how life would be - alone to find my own path and do the best I could.

I read widely and educated myself, spending many hours in the library, learning as much as I could about the world. I spent some time in a military academy - another harsh experience at 12 years of age. I learned to swim there at the end of a piece of wood - sink or swim or get beaten with the board. I remember they called it the 'board of education'. I have heard all my life of this kindness and compassion we have for others - how we value human life and our kids. I cannot say I know of that at first hand. I know only how it feels to come into the world unloved, unwanted, and belonging nowhere, with all lessons taught with cruelty and fear and beatings.

I grew up being afraid of the world - or even to speak. Never wanting to stand out - always looking for a place in life where I belonged. I took any job I could get, never complaining about pay even when it was 8 dollars a day. I worked hard and had two jobs when I was 14. I learned not only to save money but also how to take care of myself and keep out of harm's way. In short, I learned about survival because I knew I had to - from books, the streets, the forest and the sewer drain. I learned to be self-reliant never asking for help. I learned to be creative out of necessity and to be observant of the world around me. Animals and the environment became my special interests (I've written about this below in MY LIFE ON THE OUTSIDE).

HOME PAGE >>

NEXT PAGE >>