Third Child: Blurred Identity

About the Author: After 33 years of teaching Instrumental Music in the District of Columbia Public Schools, Patricia Sizer Carver pursued her interest in painting and writing. Prior to writing her memoir, she self-published a collection of poems entitled Poems Inpsired By One Word which included some of her artwork. She received her undergraduate degree in Instrumental Music Education from Virginia State University and her graduate degree in Education from the University of Maryland, College Park.

Synopsis: In her candid and insightful memoir, Patricia Sizer details her decades of personal and professional struggles against two forces beyond her control: her status as the third child, and her status as a light-skinned African American woman who is sometimes assumed to be White by both the Black and White communities.

Born in Caroline County, Virginia, Patricia grows up during America's brutal Jim Crow era of "separate but equal." Her diverse ancestry includes a White Confederate soldier, an African slave, and an Irish immigrant, among others. At a young age, she is shocked to realize the prejudice that exists within the Black community regarding skin tone. Interspersed with memorable and sometimes humorous events, she recalls the verbal and physical abuses she endured.

Even within the family unit, there are tensions created by birth order. Family secrets are revealed, one of which she is the sole possessor. Her family struggles financially, and yet they maintain a loving home driven by strong family values, discipline, and hard work.