Having been raped at the age of 16 I was initially very shocked and numb and perceived life negatively because I was disoriented and also confused. At one point in time I even contemplated suicide. However, when I started working at the hospital I realized that there were people going through very difficult things in life than what I had gone through. I changed my perception about life and decided to make a difference. Putting a smile on other people’s faces became my preoccupation this is because I realized that we only have one life to live. You either choose to go through it happily or you choose to go through it sadly.
After going through the rape ordeal I decided to let bygones be bygones and chose to be a motivating and valuable person to others. I reflected on the fact that it is not a matter of being correct or incorrect but rather one of other individuals having different perceptions of the circumstances; positions that I have to explore and acknowledge without judgment. Working at the hospital gave me this opportunity to have a new beginning and a new chapter in life. By working with different sick people and even victims of rape I developed a different perspective of rapists. I stopped being emotional and adopted a proactive approach to issues rather than a reactive one. This is because I realized that I needed to view the bigger picture and stop being judgmental till I viewed all positions.
I now enjoy volunteering at the hospital because I have since realized that other people have a lot going through their lives that one can possibly imagine. Today am a hardworking young lady who has decided to change other people’s lives. I made a commitment to adjust internally and it paid off. Every time I counseled a victim of rape I felt I was giving another soul a second chance at life and this motivated me to do it again and again. Thanks, to the rape ordeal I managed to save many people from disillusionment and possible suicide. Through empathizing with other people’s circumstances I managed to move on past the rape ordeal and the frustrations that go with it and became an ambassador for change.
Through an advocacy group I formed with a number of colleagues I have managed to reach out to young girls and counseled them on the need to take precautions while in the outdoors. I motivate myself and members of my team that through saving lives it will eventually pay off because life is about making a difference. As a result of being dedicated, inventive and persevering as well as focused, proactive and goal oriented things have changed. I have since gone past the negative attitudes I had about life and have become an instrument of change in my own community and the university where I am a second year student in Law.
As a result of working in the hospital and the community I have gained a lot of social skills. Consequently, I have managed to develop positive and effective relationships with men and women as well as the capacity to cooperate with other people in order to stop women from being raped. My success stories at the hospital have made me realize that it is important to develop a positive climate in order to live a self fulfilling life.
