Joy In The Midst of Struggles

2013 was quite the interesting year to say the least. It was filled with a lot of laughter, tears, smiles, joy, transitions, new and old things. looking back at the beginning of this year i struggled a lot with transitioning back from South Africa. I definitely had reverse culture shock to say the least. it was overwhelming coming back to people i love and wanting to talk so much about Africa and them not really understanding (which is not at all their fault). i missed the carefree nature of being in Africa and the fact that people did not judge me but instead everywhere i went i felt comfortable and accepted because in Africa they do not care about the outside. they just care about the inside . i missed being with my family (of 50 people) and waking up everyday to see there faces. but i feel like wherever you go you leave part of your heart there for i definitely did that with Africa for there is not a day that goes by where i do not think about that country, the people, and the k

One thing that has been on my heart lately is how big of an impact a simple thing can have on someone. we go through this life with selfish intentions (not to put it to harshly) but i find it is true and i know i am at fault for it. its especially relevant during this Christmas season where you walk into a mall and your supposed to be finding a gift for someone but in the meantime of finding that gift people are rude to the workers, or in a hurry. people tend to forget what is the true point to all of this. it doesnt matter what the gift is, what matters is the heart of the person that gives the gift. i especially tend to forget that each day has value and what you say and do matters. i view myself as any other individual, "normal". i often forget i even have a disability. but i have moments of individuals telling me i have made an impact on their lives. now i am not trying to sound selfish here i just want to point out that we sometimes need those comments or a certain mo

As the semester ends i have been reflecting about how this semester has gone. first off, this semester has been one i was not expecting at all. it wasnt so hard academically as it was personally. this semester has been one fight for my rights after another and i felt like i never got a break. i have had teachers discriminate against me and thinking i was not as smart as i am, i have had disability services blame me for things,. recently i have had an issue with trying to get out of pe for pe here does not benefit me like yoga does. i have had a never ending struggle this semester and i am worn out. it gets hard to consistently have to fight for your rights and sometimes i can only handle so much. but at the same time my parents have reminded me that this is never going to end and i am going to have to fight for my rights for the rest of my life. i think the reason all of this is happening currently is because it is preparing me for when i do graduate next year and how i am going to f