#FridayReflections – Making the right choice

Posted on by Parul Thakur
Esther Nyakong, 17 years old sudanese refugee, in the dormitory at Morneau Shepell Secondary School for girls in Kakuma Refugee Camp, Kenya.
Esther Nyakong, 17 years old sudanese refugee, in the dormitory at Morneau Shepell Secondary School for girls in Kakuma Refugee Camp, Kenya. Image Credits : UNHCR Tracks

What is a choice? Options or the lack of it? Why do you choose one thing over the other? Do we think about making a choice or we just go ahead with what’s convenient?

Choices make who we are. Be it the right to choose a partner, the right reason to remain fit, the choice to work or stay at home, the choice to have a child, the choice to marry, the choice to write or the choice to study.

Today, I want to tell you a story.

A real story of a seventeen year old girl, Esther Nyakong from South Sudan. Esther lost her father to war when she wasn’t even born. She and her two older sisters were brought up by her mother and their life was as hard as you can imagine. The ongoing war and the rifts made people flee to neighboring countries in the hope to remain alive and survive. Esther’s mother also took shelter in a camp when Esther was just a ten-year old. She and her sisters enrolled in a school at the camp.

Esther’s mother took up drinking and that made Esther think of her life and that she wanted her mother to be proud of her. She started studying seriously and her grades improved. Her determination made her work hard and she gained entry into a boarding school which had modern facilities, library, and an opportunity to do better in life with quality education. Coming from a culture where girls are married off early, they stay at home and raise children, Esther dreams of a career. She want to let go of the refugee tag and become the first female neurosurgeon in South Sudan. What she has with her is her determination, belief in self and hope.

Her choice to stay away from her family, devote time to studies, read to enhance her knowledge of current affairs and a will to succeed is all a hope for a future where she sees herself. She wants to prove to herself that she can make her people proud. She is ready to kick a football and bad times away from her life. She wants to make a mark in the world.

In her own words, “I would love to return as a successful citizen, ready to make a change. I want to be the girl that made it from the camp to campus and from a refugee to a neurosurgeon.”

There are many other young boys and girls from that part of the world. Those who don’t play games on ipad, go on with friends to educational tours, watch animation movies over weekends, or have a pizza party with parents. Their life is fueled by determination and hope. The choices that they make on a day-to-day basis reflects their hopes, where they want to be and who they want to become.

“May your choices reflect your hopes. Not your fears” – Nelson Mandela

What do you say? Do you too have a story to share?

Esther’s story has been written by Catherine Wachiaya and you can read it here.

This post is inspired by Esther’s life and I am writing for #FridayReflections. 

 

44 thoughts on “#FridayReflections – Making the right choice”

  1. A story for inspiration Parul. Loved reading it. Wish I could do a lot more to support girls like Esther into making their own choice of life. Sure makes us grateful that we have been able to take an education and make the choices of life. Great post on an important theme:-)

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  2. What an inspiring story! I admire people who have the determination to go beyond the boundaries life has set for them. It is also amazing that what fueled her decision at first was that she wanted her mother to be proud of her. That’s really touching and commendable.

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  5. What an inspiring story, Parul. Thanks for sharing. Stories like these make us reflect and view our own perceived problems in a different way. How wonderful that she found her source of inspiration in an unusual place!

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    1. As I was reading about Esther, I felt grateful. I also felt that the problems that I face on a day to day basis are nothing. Imagine, every day is a day survived safe and sound. I loved this girl and if she would read this comment – she should know she is wished the best in life.

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  7. I recently watched a movie called The Good Lie, inspired by the experiences of some Sudanese refugees in the US. It shows the gruesome circumstances which thousands of Sudanese children escaped, the horrors of war and the real scare of starting a new life in a place far, far away. And imagine the plight of thousands and thousand who just couldn’t escape. A disturbing movie, but worth watching. Thanks. Parul for bringing to light the story of one more girl from Sudan. Where is the world going, sometimes one has to wonder?

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  8. Brilliant post. Yes, the choice that we make certainly is important. I have my own story and struggle as a just-18 kid, but I was determined not to let people control my life, not to let circumstances shatter my dreams and to make my own path to whatever goals I have in my mind. It was my choice, I did it.

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  9. Another amazing post by you, you are an inspiration with the words you share, I feel blessed to have you join us at #Fridayreflections. This was an amazing story and makes me even more grateful for the life I was born in to

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  10. People might say, some shoulders are burdened with many a responsibilities quite before time. Well, it is at the end, either u step up and do what you have to do to make yourself or drown in complaining. Such an inspirational story that hits home. Forces u to reminiscence where you have come from and where you are headed to. Thanks for sharing Parul 🙂 Keep up the good work!

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  12. What drive and dedication that young girl has. I would love to be able to follow her story and see how it goes. Reading (I read the other article you posted the link for also) about Esther makes me grateful for all the opportunities I have had in my life, and puts the struggles I have faced in better perspective. Thank you for sharing this awe inspiring story.

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  15. This true story is ❤
    I know many of my friends who could improve their lives by reading this story.. Gonna share it with them via WhatsApp..
    Making the right choice has too much importance these days.. And whenever people speak of making a choice, only one sentence from the lips of Albus Dumbledore pops up in my mind! 😀
    Amazing post, Parul! 🙂

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  17. Esther’s story is inspirational because she had hope inspite of the adversaries and she had the courage to dream and make choices accordingly.
    All of us face difficulties from time to time though they may not be on the same lines as what Esther faced. Many a times we find ourselves faced against a wall with no straight way to march upon and then we retract, adjust to the situations, make changes to our original choices and we move left, right or even step back a little. And in that moment we are courageous.

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  18. Really inspiring story, Parul. There are many people around us battling tough times and finding the right path for them. It is just that we fail to recognize them. I am glad that you shared Esther’s story here. The strength and hope it gives to others is incredible!

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  20. I love this story and totally admire Esther! We don’t always live in the best of circumstances, and she lives in some of the worst, but she makes the choice to have hope and determination anyway. Great story!

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  22. That’s a really inspiring story :). We all have choices in life. It’s what we make of it which decides the way our life goes. While some of us sit all day sulking and crying out on the lack of opportunities to do anything big, there are others like Esther who make the most of what they have got to achieve what millions others don’t despite having all the means.

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