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My Story
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| I've learned that you have to blend in and put your best foot forward to succeed in many professional situations, but some of my friends think my professional bio sounds "snooty." I've already achieved more than I ever thought I would professionally so I don't think it'd hurt to share the not-so-glossy version.... I'm the oldest of 5 girls, but back when there were just two girls, my parents moved us to Zambia, Africa to do missionary work on the most remote mission station in the Zambia. We lived in a mud brick hut with a sheet metal roof and a wood burning stove in a not-so-safe area near the border of Angola and The Congo. Black Mambas would kill our chickens on a regular basis and my dad had to shoot a cobra in the house one day. We got shot at near borders too. Dad was a medic in Vietnam and has had health problems ever since, and Dad and Mom picked up a few more health problems from living in Africa (malaria, hepatits etc.) but somehow they raised a family of 5 girls when we moved back to the US. We ate a lot of rice and beans but we never did go on welfare. As the oldest girl there were no hand-me-downs so I wore some pretty lame clothes from the goodwill until I was old enough to get a paper route. After that I bought some nicer clothes so the high school kids wouldn't pick on me like the Jr. High kids did. In my sophomore year my friend and I tried out for cheerleding and we somehow made it. After that everyone was nice (except the other cheerleaders who couldn't believe we made it either). Now people would let me talk to them and I found that I really liked talking ALL THE TIME..and I really liked to try new things too (but only legal things). I wasn't too scared to look stupid since I was used to everyone laughing at me anyway. By taking risks I found out I was good at so many different things. Mr. Young, my chemistry teacher, said I would have even more options if I went to college. My high school advisor said that people in my situation could try to go to community college, so I did, but I had no clue what I was doing. Dad was pretty sick about this time and Dianne Greenaway was directing a play I was in at church so I ended up staying with her a lot. My parents ended up renting out part of their house so stayed with the Greenaways for 2 years while I was attending community college. Dianne and Wally taught me how to balance a checkbook and many other very valuable life skills. In college I took typing which didn't count, and a bunch of other classes that didn't count for anything either. The college advisors didn't have much to say to anyone who didn't even know what the difference was between a B.A, B.S, M.A. or PhD. I think they just thought I was stupid and figured I would give up eventually. Dianne thought I might be eligible for financial aid and so I applied for that. The forms asked how many hours you could work and I figured that if I could do 60 or 80 than they'd probably give me more financial aid for working so hard, but I got a form back that said I wasn't eligible. Later we realized that my mom had accidentally written down an extra zero on some important big number on the parents form, and a nice lady at the financial aid office said I should also say I could work less hours. In the meantime I was riding my bike over 100 miles a week between 3 jobs and school so I got a roommate closer to school where there were better paying jobs. I was probably a bit worn out at this point because I ended up with pneumonia, and then I couldn't afford rent anymore so I slept in a little mining cave I'd seen during a geology field class. I was able to take showers at school and staying at the cave was kind of like camping so I really didn't mind. One night there were beer cans from a college party at the cave and I thought maybe it wasn't so safe so I started staying at the women's shelter instead. It really wasn't that bad, but some of the guys in my Mineralogy class told my professor about it, and he told his wife and before I knew it he was telling me that I was now going to stay with them. Well that was over 10 years ago. Paul and Kate had both been through college and could talk me through it and encourage me to keep at it. Just knowing they got through it made it easier for me to believe that I could too. It was still hard work, but now I was working in the right direction. At this point you can go back and read my "snooty bio" because all of that has happened since Paul and Kate and Dianne and Wally took me in, and I can still barely believe it myself. I'm not wild about sharing all of this since it's behind me, but some friends pointed out that if you're just trying to get on your feet in life, can't afford a fancy school, don't have great grades 'cause you were working all the time, or just haven't found anyone who believes in you yet....sharing my story might encourage you. Reaching for your dreams when the playing field ain't so level takes crazy amounts of determination and it's never easy, but if you can find one or two mentors to believe in you, you really can get through it. Don't be afraid to ask for advice. Good people love to share what they've learned. Some people have the means to follow their dreams...(often at the expense of others)...but many of us do not. It's hard when people tell you to "risk it all" when you're barely surviving. I believe now that it's not important that you chase your dream at all costs...what matters most is that you hang on to it. For more encouraging words and some helpful "how to's" click on Pay It Forward |
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