Overcoming Diversity Within the Family

Alright so this week we talked a lot about the challenges families face regarding diversity and social classes. ( I will admit going into this topic I wasn't too excited but I actually learned some really cool stuff!) Obviously families are all unique and different, whether this is traditions, jobs, cultures or anything really. Some families are more well off than others, and most families don't go through the same things. We talked in class a lot about different challenges that different families face. My eyes were completely opened to the challenges many immigrants face just to come to America for what they think is a better life. Whenever I thought of immigrants I always thought of the poor people, but what I learned was that some of these people are lawyers, doctors, scientists in other countries. I had no idea so many well established people from their original country would give up everything they have just to come to America and not even be able to do the same jobs they worked so hard for. This has really opened my eyes to being more charitable to everyone I see because I really have no idea what that person has been through to get where they are today.

The next thing I would like to talk about is ways that people overcome adversity they grow up in. I can think of many cool stories of people growing up in situations that were not exactly ideal family life and making the most of what they have. One story that is particularly close to my heart is the life of my great grandpa Bill. Shortly after he was born his parents got a divorce. Around 2 years old his mother remarried a man that was very mean to my grandpa. He would beat him and wasn't a good step father at all. His real father was an alcoholic and completely out of the picture. Bill's mother knew this situation wasn't working out for her family so she decided to send my grandpa to live with his grandparents. Bill was then raised by his grandmother, whom he adored and his grandfather, who also was very hard on him. His family didn't make very much money and as a result they were on the church welfare program. Back in those days all the food from the bishop's storehouse came in noticeably different flour sacks. Bill's grandma made him shirts out of these sacks and he was so embarrassed by this. He later told his daughter, my grandma, it was at this young age that he made up his mind to never be on any kind of welfare and always work hard to be able to provide enough for his family. Bill stayed true to his word. His grandparents both died and at the age of 16 he was forced to go live with his mother, step father and their children. He enlisted in the Air Force his senior year where his love of airplanes and flying began. He was one of six people in all his area out of many applicants, along with President Boyd. K. Packer, to be chosen to attend flight school and become a pilot. He married my great grandmother and began to start a family. Bill continued to work hard for his family, always remembering where he came from and how different he wanted his children's lives to be. My grandma always remembering her dad working three jobs as a pilot, an Indian school teacher, and a carpenter. He was the father of 6 children and he payed for them all to go to college because he believed education was the best gift he could give them.


Even though my great grandpa never made millions or achieved a great degree of wealth, he was successful in achieving his dream of providing a better life for his family then he had. I am a result of Bill's hard work and determination to succeed in life. He is the perfect example of overcoming the family circumstances you are placed in. This story is a great reminder to me that we can work hard to overcome adversity in our families and lives. I think it is so important to remember that just because your family is stereo-typed as lower class or middle class does not mean you can't accomplish something great. YOU CAN BE ANYTHING YOU WANT TO BE.

Thanks for reading!
(P.S. Please feel free to comment on any of these posts I would love to hear what you have to say!)