The hottest book of the 2018 holiday season is without a doubt Michelle Obama’s autobiography, “Becoming.” People are filling auditoriums to hear her in person as she travels around the US on her book tour. Now that she is no longer First Lady, she can speak very frankly about issues that are important to her and that is refreshing – both to her and to the rest of us.
When Alecia visited the African Girls Can students at St. Katherine in October, 2017, she brought a set of Young Adult level biographies about inspirational people. This included books about Malala, Nelson Mandela, Rosa Parks, and, yes, Michelle Obama. Jennet, who was in her first year of secondary school at the time, selected the book about Michelle and has written a wonderful summary of what she learned by reading it. We wanted to share Jennet’s writing with everyone.
We’d like to think that Michelle herself would find it heartwarming that Jennet, a young woman in a remote, rural part of Northern Uganda, who is doing her best to get an education, is inspired by her. Jennet is exactly the type of person that the Obama Foundation’s new Global Girls Alliance seeks to support: “When girls get the opportunities they deserve, amazing things start to happen; poverty goes down, economies grow, families get stronger, and babies are born healthier. And the world, by all accounts, gets better. The future of our world is only as bright as our girls.”
What I Learned about Michelle Obama
by Alum Jennet
I had heard of Michelle Obama before, but I did not know the details about her. As I was reading the story about Michelle, I learned very many things. These include the following:
I learned that background is not a determination of who I will be in the future. Michelle Obama came from a poor family where the parents divided up small rooms in an apartment. But, when she grew up, she became the First Lady living in the luxurious White House.
I also learned to respect my parents and others however strict they are. Michelle’s parents were strict, but she respected them. She behaved well because they were her inspiration and she never wanted to disappoint them.
I learned to work hard in class and everywhere I am so as to be the best like Michelle. Even though taking tests troubled her, she worked harder to achieve her goal. She worked very hard in order to make good grades.
I learned to be courageous and never to quit trying until I succeed. Barack Obama kept moving from one level to another until he became President of the US. Even when he lost an election to become a Congressman in the US House, he never gave up. He tried again.
Michelle also faced some challenges while she was studying. The school she went to was very far away from their home. It was twelve miles away and could take an hour and half on two city buses, all by herself, to get there. When Michelle was at university in Princeton, New Jersey, she found it difficult to cope with life because most of the students were white and rich. They drove expensive cars. She felt discriminated against on campus. She was not allowed to share a dormitory with the white students. The white students were invited to join clubs, but they never invited Michelle because of her skin color.
If I could meet Michelle Obama in person, I would like to ask her how she overcame the problems she faced when she was a student. I would also ask her how she became a leader when she was still young.
Michelle and Barack Obama could not give full attention to their own children because they sometimes were away attending to the public. Their only communication was through video chat. What Michelle did for her children inspired me a lot. Michelle and Barack gave special attention to their children, despite being busy. Michelle would spend the night, play and eat together with them. This inspires me to be a loving parent.
Even after becoming rich, the Obamas still made rules and their children had to do some chores like making their beds and picking up their toys. This made them live a normal life.
Michelle has a very good heart and dreams of helping the poor and changing the world. This inspires me to be friendly to others.
