Reposted with permission from the author.
Originally published on June 17, 2013
This is a picture of all the Maasai girls I support in Kenya, all 12 of them. They are not just photos on my wall that remind me what I work for everyday – now I have memories of meeting them in person. They are my inspiration.
Yesterday was one of the most incredible days of my life, and I will never forget it. My mom, dad and I started off by traveling to the “interior” to see a Maasai village and visit a school there. To see the limited resources they have was startling, yet they were only more determined to study harder and the school placed first academically out of 34 schools in the surrounding area. This made me feel grateful for my amazing school.
Most importantly, I got to meet the 12 Maasai girls I support – my 12 sisters from the other side of the world. There is no way I can succinctly describe the emotions that transpired. We spent most of the day together just talking about school life and comparing our lives, learning from each other. I was impressed with their dedication to school work — an average of 10-11 hours a day — and determination to succeed at school. They expressed how grateful they were for the opportunity to go to school, and their thankfulness extended to everyone who supports RTC. Each girl was humble and did not spend time focusing on how hard their lives were, but rather transferred that energy into taking ownership of their future with the opportunities they had. We all felt blessed.
After meeting these girls, I whole-heartedly believe in their ability to become successful and have a genuine, positive impact on other people’s lives. I don’t know where this will all lead but that is the ignorant beauty of the global chain in which we are all connected.