Triumph over Lifes Challenges - Essay Example

Triumph over Life’s Challenges While life presents multiple challenges and obstacles, some people find a way of rising above these challenges and achieve their dreams. I have a close friend who fits in that description. Vanessa Georges is one of the youngest achievers in her country. At the age of twenty-eight, she has a doctor of philosophy in law. Although it may sound normal in some continents, Vanessa comes from Africa, and in such countries, she stands out among her peers. Getting to this level from a challenging background was not easy and needed resilience. Contrary to what many girls in that country have done, Vanessa adopted an attitude that has allowed her to achieve her dreams. Currently, she runs an organization that seeks to help other girls from her continent to make it in life. Vanessa’s family was of a humble setting in the African continent. She was her mother’s only child with no siblings. However, she lacked the privilege of meeting her mother who passed on her after birth. She grew up to find herself in the caring hands of her aged grandmother. Growing up was not an easy thing for her, because the economic status in her home country were not easy. Despite all the challenges, the young girl seemed to be coping well in life and making the best out of the little they had. She was an above average student in school, and financial challenges did not stop her from shining. At the end of her primary schooling, she emerged as a top achiever in the final examinations. This was no meager achievement for her because she lacked most of the basic resources but remained resilience, believing that she would excel. Her exemplary performance saw her receive an admission into one of the best schools in her country. The grandmother lacked sufficient funds to support her, but Vanessa was an epitome of determination. Nuns owned the school that she joined, a factor that later worked out very well for her. She remained an exemplary student through high school, a factor that earned her a scholarship organized by the nuns. The first two years in high school lacked major events. However, while she was sixteen, she lost her grandmother, the only family that she ever knew. Although devastated, she knew that it was not time to give up her dreams (Georges). Somehow, she managed to get over the loss and focused on her education. At the end of her four years, she emerged top of the country again. Despite the achievement, she experienced immense loneliness because she lacked family. In order to keep herself occupied, she volunteered to work in a children’s home. She did this while awaiting admission into the university. Moreover, she found a part-time job to support herself. As she worked on the voluntary commitment at the children’s home, she got a rare acquaintance with an amazing white couple. Her outstanding personality and demeanor led to the couple taking notice of her. On hearing her story, they promised to change her life. They became her foster parents and made a promise to change her life positively. A year later, they relocated to the United States of America, where she joined one of the Ivy League universities. For the first time in her life, she had sufficient resources while pursuing her bachelor degree in law. However, the contentment she was experiencing did not last because she lost both of her foster parents in a plane crush. She became overly devastated at first, and started losing focus in her academics. However, she received a wakeup call from the motivational books she used to read and realized she had to excel (Reapsome 25). Graduating with a first class in law made her happy and landed her a job with a prestigious firm. It seemed time for the rewarding of her hard work and resilience because she secured herself a master’s scholarship. Being an intelligent young lawyer, she ascended to a high profile advocate in her firm. With her demeanor and determination, she earned a good reputation despite being a woman of color. During one of her rejuvenation moments, she looked back to her story. This led her to think of the young girls back in her continent who suffer a similar fate to that she had suffered back then. It occurred to her that she had to do something. She traveled back home to launch a campaign that would encourage other girls to build the resilience and determination that could ensure they excelled (Carter 3). Her concept received a warm reception back home, and she organized team, that would identify needy but bright girls from her community. She experienced immense satisfaction when she successfully helped the first lot of ten girls to secure 100% scholarships in American and United Kingdom universities. Her program has grown in the last two years and focuses on helping both boys and girls. She manages to coordinate the activities of the organization and balance that with her demanding career. She recently graduated with a doctor of philosophy in law with exemplary grades. Although her career presents numerous challenges, she had relied on maintaining a positive attitude that fosters growth (Howe, and Christopher 69). She seeks to impart this spirit in the youths benefitting from her program. Recently, she registered for an online course in counseling to help her become a knowledgeable mentor to them. According to her, anyone can achieve irrespective of the numerous setbacks. The uncertainties in life require an individual to nurture qualities that will keep the individual standing. She highlights that the circumstances in her earlier life were substantial excuses for her to give up in life. On the contrary, she held fast onto faith, believing that a better day would come. She learned to take challenges as moments of strengthening. When her colleagues wondered how she made it through, she asserts that she focused on what she had and not what she lacked (Georges). Despite the financial challenges and loss of family, she appreciated the talents she got and focused on making that better. Vanessa has is still the humble girl that came from an African village back then. Although assertive as a lawyer, she has not puffed up with pride. She still sends contributions to the children home where she once worked. Currently, she has assumed the responsibilities of her foster parents at the children home. She respects their legacy and does her best to help others. A however, she does much more in her current community. She holds mentorship programs with students and encourages them to excel in all they do. She admonishes her mentees to accept their current circumstances. Confidently, she asserts, ‘living in denial never allows an individual get over the distresses and challenges in life’ (Georges). According to her, she managed to get over the distresses in her life because she chose to accept the things beyond her capacity to change. In her opinion, more life-defining things were in her capacity to change. She believed that she could maneuver her way in academics irrespective of the surrounding circumstances. Her story is very motivating, and her determination moving. She has an aura of authenticity, naturalness, and resilience that attracted the first day of my mentoring sessions with her. Throughout my first session, she could not hide the depth of her passion in conquering any obstacle. She has been inculcating the qualities that define the passion in her mentees. Vanessa Georges is not just a mentor to me, she is a living example that one can triumph over all the challenges in life and emerge as a successful individual. On taking notice of where she began, one realizes that it has taken her determination to get to her current state. During her mentoring sessions, she presents pictures of her past, present, and asks her mentees what they make of her. The two phases of her life are different, and in between is a twenty-eight year journey. She mentions to the student that it was not any easy venture, but she survived. Despite her current success and activities, she finds time for Christian ministry because God guided her steps. She may not be a sung hero to the globe, but she has made a difference in the lives of the many youths in her programs. Work Cited Carter, Laurence. Reflections on Life Challenges: [an Appreciation of Our Journey Through Life. Bloomington, IN: AuthorHouse, 2008. Print. Georges, Vanessa. Personal Interview. 10th Feb, 2013. Howe, Michele, and Christopher A. Foetisch. Burdens Do a Body Good: Meeting Life's Challenges with Strength (and Soul). Peabody, Mass: Hendrickson Publishers, 2010. Print. Reapsome, James W, and Martha Reapsome. Growing Through Life's Challenges: 12 Studies for Individuals or Groups. Wheaton, Ill: Harold Shaw, 2005. Print. Read More