Let me start by introducing Amanda Gorman, a 20-year-old Harvard graduate and poet recognized by the United States of America for her desire to liberate her country from what she has considered harmful to humankind.
She recited a mind-blowing poem – The Hill We Climb – at the Inauguration of the 46th President of the United States, Joe Biden. After reading, this remarkable young lady met people she dreamt she would one day meet. She said on the Ellen Degeneres show:
“And it was funny because I was there. And I remember Michelle Obama, like, being close. And she…kept yelling at Barack…stop hugging people, like stop getting close to people. And then when I was done, she…pushed him out of the way and gave me just the biggest, warmest Michelle Obama hug.”
She stated in an interview with Time Magazine when she recently featured on its new issue ‘The Black Renaissance’;
“I don’t think I always knew I was going to be an inaugural poet but every single time I wrote a public poem before I began writing it, I will tell myself, ‘write a poem that is worthy of the presidential inauguration’ I wanted to hold myself to high esteem that everything that I wrote had be worthy of hope.”
In the last few weeks, she has become a bestseller, a role model, highly sought-after on talk shows; her Instagram skyrocketed to 3.2m followers within hours.
Everyone has been asking who Amanda Gorman is. The Oprah Winfrey talk show on OWN commented about this young black woman that looks like a mini-Oprah. She has become a standard for many aspiring young people.
Running through her life, however, I asked myself why it took so long and why it’s so beautiful now.
- She remembered the goal
- She appreciated her time before being in the spotlight
Starting a career path or attaining a goal has always been rigorous. When a picture is painted about the way things will fall in their place, we seem elated. pre-school, grade school, undergraduate, internship, postgraduate or a master’s degree, fellowship, then the big job. It all seems so beautiful and attainable until it’s time for work.
Success is hard to get. It takes dedication, endurance, selflessness, and strength.
When a goal is constantly remembered, you see beyond what others see. So, when the world says you are not doing enough, you see the goal and do not compare your wins or losses with others. You create strategies peculiar to your race and you know that success is not about you.
Yep! Most young people want to attain so much for themselves. Amanda began to embrace success because she had a goal and the goal was not to be the greatest youth that ever lived, it was about everyone else.
She loves the idea of making young people converted to professional writers. Imagine such a selfless goal. Imagine everyone being a professional writer. Not just her. She wants everyone.
At the age of 16, she started a community project called One Pen One Page, focused on literacy and youth activism. At 19, still motivated by the same goal, she was named the first National Poet Laureate in the United States after publishing her first collection in 2015. From every step that she took, success was not for her. It was for someone else.
How do I know?
A poet writes from the heart. If her poetry had been tainted by a selfish zeal, she would have not written The Hill We Climb so well.
The Oxford Dictionary defines invisible as “unable to be seen; out of sight; not visible; apparently but not offline.” So you are online but everyone thinks you are offline. At that point, you feel alone in your journey. What was I thinking? On what grounds did I even start the vision?
You work smarter and be productive every day. All your efforts continue to look like a waste of time. You keep yourself hopeful for the big “one day.”
But the Holy Book says, “There is time for everything and a season for every activity.” The greatest man that ever lived on earth – Jesus of Nazareth (7–2 BC – 26–36 AD) – was invisible from the age of 12yrs old to 30yrs. And suddenly, He became known across the whole earth for his influence, manner of life and deeds in three and a half years. Before then, the world saw him as a carpenter, except for his parents.
Like Jesus, Amanda used her invisible times well. She groomed herself and was consistent in well-doing. She kept connecting till she found that great mic.
Today, I want you to embrace what you do and keep doing it. Learn from your invisible times, remember the goal and make them productive. So that when you are visible, you will stay visible and not fade out. Trust me, being invisible is better than fading out.
[Editor’s note: It should be noted that Amanda Gorman has used her poetry and platform to support abortion. However, her personal story and hard work are worthy of reflection and a source of inspiration to youth around the world.]
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