One of my favorite phrases lately has been “Life will teach you many things.”
I’m just saying.)
For some people, this happens later in life.
To learn about kids and teens who achieved extraordinary things while facing massive obstacles, read on.
And, pro tip: grab some tissues.
Khadijah Williams
Khadijah Williams was homeless starting at age six.
Nonetheless, she maintained nearly a 4.0 GPA and was offered a full scholarship to Harvard.
“I knew that education was my ticket out of poverty…
I think the most important thing that I did was to seek out help.
I signed up for programming and enrichment opportunities for low-income students.
I did every extracurricular I possibly could.
I studied twice as hard as my peers because I had to,” Williams saidin an interview.
“It was also an opportunity to be the kind of person that my mom believed me to be.
Williams graduated from Harvard in 2013.
Robles went on to wrestle for Arizona State University, and he won the collegiate national championship in 2011.
“She said she was going to go ahead and do it anyway.”
And with that, amovement was born.
Jeremy Sicile-Kira
Jeremy Sicile-Kira spent most of his life unable to communicate.
Sicile-Kira’s paintings were featured in a San Diego art show in 2016.
“I was laying on my board sideways.
It was kind of like that.
And then it let go.
Then I looked down… and it was really red, from all the blood in the water.”
Sharks, consider yourselves warned.
And that, dear reader, is what I’d call an impressively wise and compassionate four-year-old.
Is anyone besides me terrified by the very idea?)
Gaten has cleidocranial dysplasia (CCD), a condition which affects the development of the teeth and bones.
“What I really think got me the part was how I showed them that I had CCD.
I think they thought that the condition gave Dustin a purpose,” he said.
That’s one amazing ripple effect!
May we all aspire to embody more of those traits in our own lives!
