4This is the story of how a spunky little girl, who was always getting into trouble, dealt with the economic, behavioral, and spiritual problems of growing up poor in the Philippines. With limited knowledge, skill, and resources, she had to depend on her strength and wit to get by. At the age of six, with no adults around to take care of her or her younger siblings, she resorted to stealing her neighbor's eggs and pancakes when they were hungry. When food was no longer an issue, she fought for her right to play as a child, even it meant being chastised afterwards. She made sure that she had everything she needed or wanted, and no threat of punishment from her family or anyone else would stop her unless the answer to her needs was literally beyond her reach. During her elementary school years, she was a troublemaker in the classroom for reasons that she could not understand. In middle and high school, she had another problem to deal with: the spirits of the dead seemed to hover around her. This was compounded by her father's proclamation that she was ugly and wouldn't amount to anything. She set out to prove otherwise. It was during her college years that Dolores found out about Jesus, the One who helped to sort out her problems by giving her the faith, courage, and wisdom to deal with them one at a time. Finally, after moving to the United States, Dolores dared to pursue her dream of teaching. In spite of those who thought she could never be a teacher because English was not her native language, and the things they thought she lacked, Dolores was not only hired to teach, but she worked for years as a professional educator. Dolores Bennett was born in the Philippines in a little town called Mankayan in 1959. When she was inspired to write, a local Christian magazine, Sulo ng Kristiano, published her articles about lessons learned from simple things; a mother hen, a wart-covered frog, a rugged hanging bridge, and more. While teaching English/Literature at Philippine Christian University, Dolores co-authored the textbook English for Filipino Students. She moved to Tennessee in 1995 and taught elementary school and wrote the children's book The Black Feather. Before retiring, Dolores also taught GED/Hiset classes at Morgan County Correctional complex in Morgan County, Tennessee.