This girl is me
This little girl is me...
She was about 3 years old when this picture of her in her daddy’s arms was taken. She was born in Berkshire but emigrated to Saudi Arabia with her family at 18 months old. Her father worked for an Airline over there for over 20 years. Even though women were not allowed to work in Saudi Arabia unless, under special sponsorship, her mother was a business owner. She ran a successful business from home, trimming, perming, and colouring ladies’ hair in the compound we lived in.
This little girl made friends from all across the globe thanks to her education at an international school. She enjoyed education over there and took part in activities such as Cross Country Running, Gymnastics and Band in which she played the flute. However, this little girl cried her heart out when her family moved back to the UK full time, leaving all her friends behind and the only life she really knew. Education in the UK was very different. There were school uniforms, new lessons, different spellings, and bullies. She was the short, unfashionable, American accented girl from the desert that didn’t fit in. And because she was different, this little girl was hit, kicked and punched in the face
Fast forward to a few years later, and this little girl went off to college. This time she got into an accident that put her in a wheelchair for nearly a year. She again had to overcome being a new kind of different from her peers. She had to learn to walk again whilst continuing her studies. Eventually, this little girl got into university, where she studied Event Management. She completed her course with distinctions and was awarded “Most Improved Student” by the county council.
She worked as an assistant manager in a pub, sales office manager and in various administrative positions. She became a wife and mother of two. She gave up the corporate world following the birth of her second child when her employer couldn’t take her back, citing financial reasons. This little girl then made a promise to her father to work hard and make something of her own. 4 days later, she lost her daddy to cancer.
Four months after her father’s passing, this little girl launched her VA business. She is now running a successful VA team, having helped over 25 businesses in the past 2 years. And she is still going strong. But this little girl hasn’t finished yet and has big plans for the years to come.
To this little girl, I would say, stay true to yourself. Work hard. Ignore the bullies because what they say isn’t true. I would tell her to trust her instincts and believe in herself. I will tell her grief gets easier to deal with but will always be a part of you. I’ll say to her that it’s ok to cry. You don’t need to be strong all the time. Things won’t always go the way you planned, but you will adapt, and things always work out in the end.
This is probably the most personal post I’ve written so far.
Why am I sharing this with you? Because 70% of girls feel more confident about their futures after hearing from women role models.
#thislittlegirlisme is a beautiful campaign initiated by Inspiring Girls Internationa.
I would love to see women in my network share their stories as #storytelling does help in giving inspiration to the younger generation.
#thislittlegirlisme