Nishma

“When we meet real tragedy in life, we can react in two ways-either by losing hope and falling into self destructive habits or by using the challenge to find our inner strengths”- Dali Lama. I have witnessed and encountered many tragedies in my life and are going share the trials and tribulations that I have endured and how life has made me a stronger Individual today.

The point of this story Is not to upset those who have witness tragedies as well or frustrate those who are going through something UT to show that anyone can come out stronger through tragedies they’ve witnessed, instead of faltering into a distressful state of mind. My story begins at just the age of 8, we Just had moved to a South Texas town, Counted, this town had about 2,000 to 3,000 people residing in It. My parents had decided this was the perfect place to raise me and my brother who Is two years older than me.

I TLD understand much then, but from what I can remember the only problems I had was what flavor of Ice cream I wanted when my father took me to the ice cream shop and which Disney Handel show was on. But then, as I thought things were Just fine, On one summer night I heard noises in my parents’ bedroom and I overheard my favorite hero crying in the bedroom and saying he needed to tell us something terrible had happened. As he sat me down on his lap and told me that grandfather had passed away. My grandfather had been diagnosed with lung cancer shortly after he came from India to America too visit us.

My father had to take him back to India when they found out he diagnosed. I sat there not understanding what had happened and hearing my ere in tears for the first time. It was one of first of many forms of tragedy I have had to witness as I thought nothing could shake my father but at this moment I realized I was wrong and got scared, this moment had changed my whole perspective on anything can happen at any moment. But what really stood out to me was my father’s ability to go through the tough times and soul be strong for everyone else. This tragedy I witnessed taught me how to be strong and not to take things or people for granted.

I was able to be an emotional support for my parents. Tragedies can come n several deferent ways in different parts of our lives. In relation to this I witnessed my father face his second tragedy in life, his pride and Joy was his business but, in 2001 when the markets slowed, the hotel my father owned, which was about a 12 room property, slowed down to a point where he could not afford to keep it open anymore. We had days we TLD have electricity, and It got so bad that my dad to give up his car too. After about two years of hoping it would regain business, it lead us to a disappointment.

My dad had given up, had to give the hotel up to the bank. This was something that he had to face head-on and decided to go back to work again. Though his pride and Joy were lost, he developed a sense of motivation which would bring him back to one day owning a business again. I didn’t really understand the direct impact on my life. This is an example of a tragedy that I witnessed and was able to learn that though you might fall, you always have to get back up stronger and even more motivated then you were before. Later at the age of 14, I witnessed prejudice towards my mother because of her disability.

My mother was diagnosed severe bipolar disorder along with chronic schizophrenia. She had unpredictable days of outburst of anger, frustration, along violent actions. But she had days when she would be completely normal. As a family we felt completely helpless at times. Most of my mom’s side of the family were not there to support us and ignored the situation. In the community that my parents and I lived, primarily Indo-Asian, did not accept people with disabilities, and were often times excluded in events, gatherings and have caused them to lose their Jobs.

Being witness to this type of scenario and the idea that we as a society think time has improved our “backwards way of thinking” has caused me to rethink how far we have actually come and how far we still need to go. As a observer, I was in disbelief that people be the way they were to my mother who has one of the most open minded and honest soul. Some of the verbal language that was thrown at her as I heard as a child left me with a bitter taste and sometimes vivid scenes from the past. The taunts such as “she’s crazy’ and “she needs to be sent to a mental hospitals.

Tragedies can not only effect the primary individual but the individuals around them, as I was an example in this case being Judged as my mom. I now am able to voice to injustice for my mom. I have been able to help provide my mom and much more acceptable environment and give her that happiness she deserves. Her condition has given me the motivation to show people that despite her health she was able to raise a responsible daughter. Misfortunes that have been overcome can be described as triumphs.

A primary example of this can be said about my father going through his fife with a several different tragedies, but following every tragedy, he has made it to overcome those and created triumphs. For example, after he lost his business he had to start from the bottom of the hotel industry. As I witnessed him move from one Job to another I saw him learn from every opportunity he had and then carried that up the ladder. Triumphs can be created through small or big steps following tragedies. Being a witness to tragedies can really set yourself up to realize that you have them in your own life too and those triumphs keeps you going.

In my life I have seen my ether go through many obstacles that were tragedies too me. Being a witness to huge life events of the closest people in your life can lead to many lessons and those lessons can teach you how to work through your own tragedies. In conclusion I have witness many tragedies and I have also witness many triumphs, The examples I have given above about my grandfather passing away, about my father losing his business and having to get through the problems of prejudice with my mom and the community we lived in, shows that tragedies can be overcome despite the obstacles.

I eave witnessed many triumphs watching my father having his through the hotel industry, in his career and his personal life. Every step he took to get to the triumph was another step forward . Let’s all about having building blocks and overcoming obstacles to get there. Being a witness to these, personally, has made me a stronger, thriving and motivated individual. It’s all about learning through other people’s problems or learn how to deal with them when I have my own. Today, I have built my foundation from overcoming these problems, and has made me understanding and a responsible person.