Ben Carson

So, ages and ages ago before dinosaurs roamed the earth my mother gave me a book called Gifted Hands.  It was about this inner city Black kid with no daddy but who had a really determined mom who knew the value of education.  Long story short, the kid becomes a world-renown surgeon who is the first to separate conjoined twins (who are joined in the back of their head).  He's a big-wig these days.  It's a wonderfully inspiring story that's easy to read and I highly recommend it.  Anywho, to celebrate Black History Month at the school I attend, they brought in none other than THE Dr. Ben Carson as a keynote speaker.  Even though it overlapped into my calculus class and I had to trek through the freezing rain, I attended the event and had him sign my brand new copy of his latest book, Thinking Big.

Going to his speech was the best thing for my winter blues because I seem to keep forgetting that human beings are literally capable of anything.  One of my favorite things he said was to learn from dismal failure, which is hard for me because I tend to just get depressed that I've failed.  But if there's one thing I have had the opportunity of learning, it's that just because you have failed does not make you a failure.  History is filled with people who have flipped the failure coin on its back and have found success. 

The second favorite thing he said that I loved was to develop the talents God has given you so that you can use them to elevate others.  For some reason, I've never really thought about it like that.  I've heard of developing your talents and I've heard of serving others but rarely have I heard of the two coming together.  It was a beautiful thought coming from a person who has lived it.  His speech was uplifting and I am so glad I went.  I just thought I would share.