My life story thus far is like many of you full of surprises and downfalls, which of course is expected with our ever-changing society. Let’s initiate with my upbringing; I grew up in a variety of nations, primarily in Western Europe, which influenced my personality, music tastes, and love for the arts. However, it was not always like this; I was born in the small nation of El Salvador, which is located in the middle of Mesoamerica whose neighbors are Honduras, Nicaragua, and Guatemala. In retrospect, my childhood was a blend of different elements from enjoying the simplest things, living a humble environment, and the interaction with a wide array of demographics like a cathedral mosaic pattern. Although I didn’t spend the majority of my childhood in El Salvador, I absorbed the humbleness and experiences to fuel my outlook in life, which also fueled my steady work ethic. Shortly, my family and I moved to the United Kingdom where I had to learn adaptability since I did not know any English whatsoever, and my school did not have many ESOL programs since it lacked in diversity; thus, no little demand which meant I had to learn the hard way and adapt to the environment I was living in. Hence, the origins of my developing adaptability trait; this trait has facilitated my ability to interact with different demographics and adapt to different circumstances which may favor me or be against my odds.
Subsequently, I was faced with a horrendous ordeal that plagued my life in unimaginable ways, which were my growing obesity. After moving from nation to nation and trying different kinds of cuisine at staggering serving amounts, I found myself eating more than my body could breakdown. Consequently, I did not have a sustainable exercise routine which did not favor my eating habits and my overall health; as a result, In 2016 I was feeling horrid this was my freshman year in High School it was one of the worst Monday’s I can recall. The start of the day was mundane nothing unusual the standard drag of a High School headed to their classes; however, after lunch, I was feeling light-headed my body was shaking, and I felt so weak also my hands where so numb as if needles were stuck to each finger. Therefore, my parents took me to get blood samples after calling my doctor, which revealed the horrid condition I was in; from high blood pressure to alarming stages of hypertension and even high cholesterol! Ultimately, I was at the lowest point in my life at this point I had to change my habits and develop an accountability-based system to combat these obstacles since I did not want to look 285 pounds my whole life. After, an arduous journey to of weight loss and all sorts of suffering, I finally came to my transformation of 215 pounds, which impacted my self-esteem, outlook on life, and overall lifestyle choices. In other words, I have used a similar approach to my academic career/professional career, and no matter how staggering the odds are against you, you need to hold yourself accountable to your faults and setbacks that is what makes the impact to your transformation and overall success. Unfortunately, our modern society has offered us false quick fixes with lucrative marketing practices that appeal to our emotional-based systems; for instance, many of the apps and pills we are always advertising offer a “quick-fix.” Which we savor in our minds and create mirages that our problems will be fixed, no more hardships, and pesky problems that obtrude us from achieving those highs we crave. In summary, my story is this, ever-lasting change and adaptability is impossible if we do not set accountability mechanisms to change our behavior and overall lifestyle we will not thrive and despite what popular media says about “quick-fixes” there is no such thing, and no matter what they advertise a meaningful/purposeful life is only attained through sustainable incremental changes sustained over-time.
“Look around you. Everything changes. Everything on this earth is in a continuous state of evolving, refining, improving, adapting, enhancing…changing. You were not put on this earth to remain stagnant.”
– Steve Maraboli, Life, the Truth, and Being Free
source: https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/evolving
mysevenblessings.com 