When to Give Up

"Never, never, never, never give up." Winston Churchill

 

It’s our colleges’ graduation week.  I was honored to be asked to work with seven student speakers from two different institutions for their Honor’s and Commencement speeches.  What an inspiration to hear their stories of adversity, and perseverance.  I’d like to share some of them with you (I’ve changed the students’ names).

Here’s how Mary began her speech, “When I was fourteen years old, I was picked up by police officers in New Mexico.  I hadn’t bathed in months, I was living out of a tent, and I was selling medicinal oils to tourists.  My father was an abusive alcoholic and had kidnapped me from my mother, who frantically searched for me for months….

Mary went on to share about the dreams she would have, wishing that one day she could grow up and help others like her that were broken and feeling worthless.  One morning she watched her mother filling out a form to register to go to college, and decided she wanted to go to school with her.  So at fourteen years of age, Mary began her college education. She and her mother, graduating together side my side. “Just look at me now,” Mary, almost shouts at the end of her speech, “I’m going to UofA next year and turn my dreams into reality.  I’m going to become a lawyer.”

“In my spring semester of 2012," Cassandra's speech begins, "life was beating me up pretty badly. With 17 credits still left, I had a choice to somehow finish out the semester, which I could not afford, or quit school unwillingly. So, I sold my car, the only asset I owned, to pay for my classes. In middle of my final semester, I left class one day, feeling ill and found out I had suffered a stroke….” Cassandra spent weeks in the hospital. ”I wasn’t able to walk, to talk, or to move the left side of my body, but I still had my mind…, I could still think….and I had 8 weeks of classes I had to finish.”  A good friend brought her a gift one day as she came to visit; a laptop computer. The Doctors at the hospital were furious when they walked in and saw her lying in the bed, slowly plinking on the keys with her one good hand, typing up her quantitative analysis paper.

 “I was diagnosed with autism when I was four years old.” began Jonathan, a tall, redheaded young man. “I was a social outcast at an early age in school,” He talked of the cruel teasing from classmates and about the years of confusion, and the acting out that got him in trouble.  He entered into middle school with a bad reputation and heavy burden of self-doubt…  Jonathan began playing basketball…”I got good at it.  Our coach expected his players to work together as a team; so not only was I finding a new world on the court, but I was also finding new friends. My sports success motivated me to excel in school; I finished with a 3.8 grade point average.  Basketball and my coach were my cure for autism.”  It may not surprise you to hear that John is on his way to medical school…

Patricia talked about being raised in poverty, and abuse, and after years of living hungry and in fear, she ran away and found a 2^nd home with her best friend’s adopted family.  Pregnant, poor and plagued with a past whose memories met her each night in the dark lonely hours, she saw no hope, only despair….. 

Patricia told us of a high school teacher, that didn’t look at her growing belly and defensive character with disdain, but rather recognized her behavior as being one of a hurting, lost child. “My teacher gave me the gift of hope and handed me a light to get me to the end of the tunnel.  Thanks to that role model in my life, I’m going to be a Special Education teacher.”  Patricia concluded, “I want to make that teacher proud, and pass forward that hope and help mend another broken heart.”

My students inspire me.... and it seems perfect to end this week's blog with Jonathan’s closing words of his speech.  “Never give up….never, never give up.”


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