My parents erased me from their lives years ago. I sat by myself at my sister’s Navy ceremony… until one of her officers looked straight at me and asked, “Ma’am… SEAL commander?”…018

My parents erased me from their lives years ago. I sat by myself at my sister’s Navy ceremony… until one of her officers looked straight at me and asked, “Ma’am… SEAL commander?”

The entire room went silent. Even my mother seemed to forget how to speak…

My name is Erin Callahan. After fifteen years away, I returned home and discovered my family had created a version of itself where my name no longer had a place.