In Her Shoes Home
From Homeless to Harvard
Khadijah Williams, 18, overcomes a lifetime in shelters and on skid row.
I came across this amazing story on the L.A. Times site about a young sister’s journey from homelessness to Harvard. It served as a stark reminder that no matter how many obstacles we’re facing in life, we can’t lose sight of the bigger picture. Hard work and resilience are rewarded and the universe’s blessings are available to us at all times – as long as we continue to believe!
Excerpt from the L.A. Times:
She walked past students laughing, gossiping, napping and combing one another’s hair. Past a cellphone blaring rap songs. And past a substitute teacher sitting in a near-daze.
“No wonder you’re going to Harvard,” a girl teased her.
Around here, Khadijah is known as “Harvard girl,” the “smart girl” and the girl with the contagious smile who landed at Jefferson High School only 18 months ago.
What students don’t know is that she is also a homeless girl.
As long as she can remember, Khadijah has floated from shelters to motels to armories along the West Coast with her mother. She has attended 12 schools in 12 years; lived out of garbage bags among pimps, prostitutes and drug dealers. Every morning, she upheld her dignity, making sure she didn’t smell or look disheveled.
