As One Door Closes Another One Opens

Mariatu Kamara has been through some very dreadful moments in her life, but if those moments wouldn’t have happened, she would not be the strong, influential women she is today.Try to think back to when you were 12. Did you sleep in the same room as your siblings? Were you faced with all the challenges and fears that occur during a war? Did you experience all the emotions, fears and demands of becoming a parent and raising a child even though you would of been a child yourself? If not, then you would have a difficult time understanding what Mariatu went through at such a young age.

Throughout the book Mariatu proved that she is a very strong, women. Her first devastating challenge happened when she has lost both her hands during war and she had to learn to adapt to her disability. By the age of 12, not only was she raped and being very naive as to what had happened, she became pregnant and gave birth to a child.  She also had to raise her baby with no knowledge on what to do but thankfully she did receive some assistance from her family. Because of all the events, she realized that she can make a difference to a lot of people that may be experiencing similar struggles, and encouraging them to never give up and that’s just what she did. “I knew then what i had to do. I may not have hands, but I have a voice. And no matter how nice my home in Canada is, my first home will always be Sierra Leone. The heart of my country is the heart of the people who helped me see myself not as a victim but as someone who could still do great things in this world.” on page 211.  Mariatu sent a positive messages around the world. Mariatu is a strong, influential women and she encourages others to be face their challenging moments and instead of allowing these challenges to hold a person back they should stay positive and learn to accept and work with their new life path . Mariatu isn’t letting the fact that she has no hands bother her. She is using it to her advantage, proving to others that it isn’t impossible to live a normal life. The only thing that matters to Mariatu is that she has a voice. “I felt i had found a purpose. I could contribute by telling the world about war, about family, about being a girl in Sierra Leone.” on page 210. Mariatu did not always feel confident in who she was, there were times where she felt depressed, and very unsure of what was going to happen next. The important thing is that after time, she became a more confident, courageous, secure, young lady who was able to help others in similar situations.