According to society's standards my life should be a total mess. When my father died I was only 5 years old, so my mother raised me and my 6 brothers and sisters on her own. Therefore, according to some people in society I should be emotionally crippled in some way because I was raised without an adult male figure in our home. And the fact that we were raised in a neighborhood (Wellston) that most would consider poor (we didn't know we were poor) I should carry a poor "mentality" with me throughout life. Furthermore, even though I graduated Valedictorian in Wellston, the eductation wasn't considered "top of the line" when ranked with other school districts, so I should not have expected to make it far at a higher level of education. And then there was my mom's belief that books and boys don't mix. And because of her standard, my 2 sisters and I weren't allowed to date while in school under her roof (including college). This meant I should have either been a totally out of control female or been totally unable to communicate with the opposite sex later in life. If I was raised with the mentality that I should not expect anything beyond the statistics rendered by society, then yes, I would be doomed to walk this earth practically as a recluse because of circumstances that were outside the norm in my life. The truth is that I am not crippled in anyway due to not having my father or any other fatherly figure in my life. The truth is that I do not carry a "poor" mentality, but a mentality that I have and will always have exactly what I need. (There is a big difference between needs and wants). The truth is that I went on to a very good university, did very well in my studies, and earned my bachelor's degree in four years. And another truth is the only problem I have with the opposite sex is me yielding to the fact that I don't have to measure my self-worth against society's time clock regarding my singleness. The simple fact of the matter is that many people in life live above what society would expect of them.
None of us have to accept what society, a text book, or any studies have to say about what our lives will be. Life can deal you a bad hand but unlike the card game, you really do have the opportunity to change your outcome. But it all starts with your mentality. Probably nothing pushes me more than someone telling me I can't do something. If I find a loophole anywhere, you better believe I'm going to do my best just to prove them wrong. Nothing pushed me more back in 2008 when I was determined to stop seeing a "2" as the 1st digit in my weight on the scale than when I was being told, "You know you not gonna lose them hips." And you know they said the wrong thing to me, right? There was never any question about my build, BUT I KNEW that I was meant to be smaller that I was for my 5'1 frame. And yes! I proved them wrong! Never let anyone tell you what you cannot do when you know the possibility is there. Know the difference between the things that you can change and the things you cannot change. And once YOU KNOW, you'll be well on your way to be all that you were destined to be.
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