Sunday, May 31, 2009
Convocation
My sister and I had very different experiences in Africa when we were kids. While I hid in a corner reading any book I could get my hands on, she ran wild around the villages. Everyone knew her, and she knew everyone. She was afraid of nothing.
The adjustment was difficult for all of us when we returned to Canada. My woeful fashion sense and complete lack of knowledge of 80s trivia aside, I did okay at school, probably thanks to all that obsessive reading. Unfortunately, my sister found it even harder to reintegrate. There being no points awarded for life experience, she was put back a year. This meant that while all of her friends went to the 'big kids' side of the school, she was left on the 'little kids' side. It was humiliating for her and I think it coloured her image of her academic self. She never thought of herself as smart or competent enough achieve much.
Well, today we celebrate my sister's convocation from University. She did it, and she did it well. She pulled off her degree while working often more than full time hours, and then in the last year while recovering from a major accident that resulted in a significant disability in her right hand. Her dominant hand. Her write-an-essay-or-do-anything-at-all hand. She couldn't lift so much as a glass of water, but did my sister back down? No way. (Oh yeah, and Worker's Comp? You still completely suck for not supporting her efforts to get her degree).
She hasn't stopped at convocation. She now runs a city-wide mentorship program that basically tries to prevent extremely high risk youth from destroying themselves. It's incredibly important work, and it just goes to show just how wise, capable and dedicated my sister truly is.
I'm so proud of her, and now I'm off to eat obscene amounts of buffet food in celebration.
posted by Working From Home Today
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