Nothing Happens Unless You Take Action
I was born and raised in New York City (the South Bronx) and let me tell you, there’s no rural. My mother and father are from the Dominican Republic and they moved to the United States for a better future. Before my father decided to settle in the United States, he lived in South America and had many jobs that led him to be a renaissance man. Growing up, he was the super of a building where we lived and I believe he was getting paid about $400 a month to maintain the building, to work on the boiler, and organize the trash and prepare it for the garbage man. My mother was a stay at home mom/wife and she would help him keep the building clean and mind you, she had four kids to take care of. Since I was the youngest, I would tag along with my parents and go grocery shopping and even collect cans and bottles to put it in the reverse vending machine (RVM) to make some money.
At a certain point, I was at school age and I remember seeing someone I knew from school and being embarrassed that they saw my mother and I putting the used cans and bottles in the machine. Funny enough that in 2020 (before Covid), I ended up collecting bottles in my apartment in Tennessee and took it to NYC to make some money (we were having financial issues at the time and I was serving in the military), even the homeless helped us put the bottles in the machine because some were being turned down. My husband told me multiple times that he was embarrassed and then I remember little ol me feeing the same way and my mother was upset and hurt. Many of us don’t come from rich families, but we make the best of what we have to provide for our families. Some people have it all and then they lose it. Some have nothing at all and get it all. It all ends up to be a mindset because my family has leveled up over the years and I now own a home on 5 acres (I want more acreage only because I want a farm. Is moving in our future? Highly likely).
I’m sharing this information because we need to be grateful for everything we currently have. I had friends who told me they were jealous that I bought the house I currently own. If people knew my past, they wouldn’t say such a thing but be amazed about how far I came. Back in 2018, I moved out of my apartment in the Bronx that was 2 blocks away from the Yankee Stadium because I was joining the military and I couldn’t afford to pay it, even though it was almost $1,000 a month. I had 2 full time jobs and one was in the day time and the other was overnight (located in two different areas in Brooklyn). The first job was in the Brooklyn Army Terminal and the other in the old Pfizer building that was shut down. I worked both jobs for a year and during that time I was working on getting in shape to be in the military. I could only sleep 2 hours before going to the overnight job and once I clocked out,, I had to go to my day job. I had my cat Lexi that barely saw me, so my mom did me the favor to check on her and feed her.
I have made so many sacrifices over the years and I continue to till this day and it gets hard at times because I’m no longer alone. I have a husband and an 8 month old and whatever I decide to do, affects us. My husband and I are a team and we talk through everything until we have a solution or a decision. It’s important for couples to be on the same page and if not, make compromises. Communication and patience is what makes or breaks a relationship. But overall, this is to show that I didn’t wake up one day and have everything I have now.
People need to appreciate what God has given them and they must view it as a seed that needs to be planted. Once you appreciate what you have, you’ve planted a seed that you can now watch grow but it needs you to give it water and sunlight. The water and sunlight represents the hard work that that you need to do to get to where you want to be and be able to achieve your goals. To see the seed become a tree is to see yourself become successful. Everything in life needs a foundation and my foundation is God and I do everything through him.
I always use myself as an example for growth because I didn’t have the material things I have now. But I always had God, excellent health, happiness, love, my family, and friends. I hope this blog got you in your head and thinking about your past and comparing it to your life now. When you want your life to change, you need to change your mindset, be patient, and trust the process.
“Nothing is impossible. The word itself says ‘I’m possible.’” — Audrey Hepburn
