THE PERSON THAT INSPIRES ME

          Hey folks ! Im Michelle and welcome to the very first post from my blog 'Unconventional Notions'. As a budding writer , blogs serve as the perfect platform to potray my cavernous ,random,unconventional, midnight thoughts ,opinions from the depths of my drafts -like this one. And whats a better introduction than starting off with a post about the person that drives me to push my boundaries .So here we go ! 

                      THE PERSON THAT INSPIRES ME 

            "The process of being mentally stimulated to do or feel something, especially to do something creative " - definition of 'inspiration' , Oxford.

The word 'inspiration'  is a vast term , in fact we all may have our own definition of ‘inspiration’. We are faced with myriad  obstacles in our daily  life, and occasionally in the lowest times of our lives we seek inspiration. My definition of 'inspiration ' would be - A golden box of jewel/jewels  that we open once a while that serves a catalyst to get us through tough times. In my case , this golden box contains a single jewel - Michelle Obama .

People tend to ask why Michelle ? " Is it because you share an identical first name?" And I burst out into a fit laughter . "Where do I start ?" I ask them . I consider her as the epitome of benevolence .She is a source of inspiration not only to me , but to millions of young girls world over. From starting various campaigns  to writing books , Michelle Obama, a lawyer ,writer  serves as an inspiration , not only as First Lady but also as a simple young girl.

    Michelle LaVaughn Robinson , born and raised in Chicago ,Illinois was ingenious and a vivacious little girl. She attended high school, served as student government treasurer and graduated with top grades .She aimed high and dreamed big , placing her ambitions education and family over  anything else .Having an older brother , she faced the brunt of gender discrimination , but took the negativity around her as ‘ a fuel to keep going '. Princeton University , one of the oldest and prestigious institutions in the US, was her next aim. In her book ‘Becoming’ , she recalls being warned by high school class teachers for ‘setting her sights too high’. Despite this , she wrote a dynamic application and got accepted into Princeton University .She proceeded to graduate with a BA. in Sociology and then a law degree from Harvard Law School. To say the least ,her journey was one of the bumpy kind . From gender discrimination to racial discrimination .She managed to side-step them smoothly. The impediments Michelle faced, reminded me of my own, she led me to believe that more than anyone I must listen to myself , I must trust my abilities.

        "We can't afford to wait for the world to be equal to start feeling seen"- Michelle Obama on inequality and discrimination .

     Michelle actively supported husband Barack in his endeavour's , when he applied for president , she gave forceful speeches and engaged the audience .The comments were endless , and the positivity in those comments  less. But she turned a deaf ear to criticism and wore casual outfits  to bond with people, to make them feel at ease. When Barack won the elections ,it made him the first African American president , and Michelle first African- American First Lady of USA .She continued to stand by him and his policies .Even after victory , she had formed a special  bond with the people of the country .Through this, she taught me that beauty lies in simplicity .Higher position doesn't mean higher class.

    As First Lady , Michelle came up with meaningful initiatives. She visited homeless shelters, and advocated health and education. She took the lead with campaigns  like 'Lets Move' which aimed to tackle the problem of child obesity in America by proposing the use of organic foods for school lunches . The  'Let Girls Learn' initiative started by Michelle in 2015, was to provide funds for girls education projects in conflict zones ; installing school bathrooms; treatments for HIV ;poverty and other reasons that kept  girls out of schools .She travelled to multiple countries around the world like Liberia ,Morocco ,Saudi for this initiative .Apart from these Michelle and Barack have consistently succored LGBT rights , and opposed discrimination against the community .Once again through her good works and passion towards public service , she teaches me to be strong , to be compassionate and caring , and broaden my vision.

 

    Michelle put down her story wonderfully through  her book Becoming ,which also won a Grammy .Her story , inspired many including me .I realized a lot of what inspired me was not just the First Lady Michelle ,most if the inspiration I drew from her was from  her younger self .There could be endless reasons I could list , and no its not because we have identical first names! Her confidence in herself ,leadership qualities, and caring attitude is what I aspire to have ,not so that I become like her , but so that I become me.

                               “Choose the people that lift you up “-Michelle Obama.

                                                                                              

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