The day I started going blind, when I was walking home from school the pathway got blurrier and darker with each step. I kept my left foot on the sidewalk while I used my right foot to trail the grass line in order for me to make sure that I wasn’t veering off into the road. I knew when I reached my street because there was a unique dip in the sidewalk and as I turned onto it, grandmas house was only about three lots down. She did not have much grass, so using my feet I was able to count the lots and identify when I got to her house.

As I fumbled my way to the front door, I found that my cousin whom I had not seen in a long time, was waiting for me on the front steps. She was waiting for me to arrive because she did not have a key to get into grandma’s house. Struggling and failing to put the key in the lock in order to open the front door, she noticed my difficulty and asked me what was wrong. I told her “I cannot see cousin.” “What do you mean?” she asked. “It is dark and I cannot see anything,” I restated. She then took the key from me, unlocked the front door, and reaching for my hand, guided me inside. That cousin is named Hope.

It was Hope who led the way for me, and I will be hope and lead the way for others. I have aspirations and goals, yes, but mostly I am always seeking the next achievement, to not brag but demonstrate what it means to not give up. Each time you fall you can find the strength to stand back up again. I have been on that ground plenty of times, but every time I have, I stood up and I was a little stronger and a little different. In order for me to persevere I had to reforge myself into someone else, piece by piece. I am not the same person that I was three years ago. I became my own hero and discovered a deeper strength that I did not even know I possessed. If this story is for you, do not give up. Do not yield. Keep floating. You can and will stand back up again.

I have come a long way from the little girl who went blind in school. I have found the greatness in myself and I seek to help others find their greatness too.