We all have talents. A lot of us have jobs, but outside of those jobs, our hobbies and down-time activities host some of our most powerful gifts. It’s the things we’re most passionate about that will make the greatest impact in this world.
I saw this with Inez Kaiser. With roots in journalism she used those writing and communicating skills and transferred that into her journey in the civil rights movement with getting messages across and creating an impact. I want to do this for myself as well.
Whenever I think of things I’m passionate about, I immediately think of the Black story. More specifically, my story. Growing up in a world where having beautiful hair meant you were mixed with something or where the use of proper English made me “better” than other black girls oddly encourages me.
My second passion of writing and storytelling drives me to tell my story to the world in a creative way.
I used to hate my story. I used to be embarrassed to be from a place like Flint, Michigan. I use to hate having to explain to people that I grew up without my biological mother in my life. All of the things that represent the life of a stereotypical black family was simply embarrassing to me to talk about. However, that’s when I learned exactly why I should love my story.
The story is the journey. The journey is what makes us who we are. We are everything that our story is and that is why telling that story is so important, no matter who you are.
When I first started writing, I was hit with the hard truth of, “You can’t become better without reading.” As I progressed with my writing and reading skills, I discovered the power of a story. Whether a fairy-tale or a revealed truth within a real-life story, the story itself is something that resonates deep within me.
Being a future public relations professional, I often think of the impact I can make. That impact includes helping to pave the way for more people like me, just like Inez Kaiser did and telling my story in a creative way in order to showcase all that one can become despite everything they had to do and go through to get where they are today.
Don’t forget about the Inez Y. Kaiser GKC-PRSA Memorial Scholarship Fund! Learn more about it here.
