Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story

Have you ever had a moment in your life where you felt so lost? Do you ever complain
about why God is so unfair to you? You have to know there is no such thing as a free lunch.
The harder you work, the luckier you get. There is a girl – Liz Murray, through her efforts she
changes her misfortunes into blessings and persevered from being homeless to become a
Harvard student. When the environment we grow in becomes too toxic, not many of us have
the courage to look beyond the limits. The movie I want to share with you is Homeless to
Harvard: The Liz Murray Story, whereby a homeless teenage girl from Bronx New York
beats all odds to become a Harvard student. Most certainly, you must all see this movie for
the following three reasons. A) Even in the midst of despair, find hope in it. B) Your destiny
is in your own hands. C) Your hard work and persistence will pay off in the end.
Although some experiences might have you despairing in life, the best thing to do is to
find hope in it. For example, Liz’s parents were drug addicts who were incapable of taking
care of Liz and her siblings, which eventually caused Liz to drop out of school. Her
childhood was mostly consumed by her drug-addicted parents who the only thing they craved
for was the high. They did not care for Liz and her sister, to the extent that they were kicked
out and had to survive on the streets. In addition to having dysfunctional parents, Liz also had
to take care of her Schizophrenic mother who was batting AIDS at the hospital. She was
barely 16 when she lost her mother. Liz had never had a connection with her mother but her
mother’s demise proved harder for her since her father could not take care of the family.
You might not realize it, but your destiny is in your own hands. We are the creators of
our destinies but it takes strong will and efforts to realize that we have to start from
somewhere. When Liz realized that by being on the streets, she would be continuing the cycle
of homelessness and despair, she knew that she had to do something differently. She
embarked on her journey of applying for high school to get a good education that she hoped
would chart a new life for herself and her sister. Her mother’s death was a rude awakening,
and she realized that if she did not complete high school, she would never have an
opportunity to make her life any different from her mother’s.
Your hard work and persistence will pay off in the end. These words are quite familiar
to many of us, yet we disregard the journey and wish the results. Success is mostly
attributable to tenacity; Liz is a prime example of a tenacious mind that never settled for
rejection. After prolonged struggle, Liz finally got into high school and gave it her best shot.

As a result, she became a top student and after participating in an essay writing context, she
won a scholarship for Harvard.
In conclusion, Liz Murray’s story is a great motivational film that shows how tenacity,
hard work and persistence can lead to successful outcomes. We chart our paths each day, but
the moment we realize that we can create our destiny as well becomes the pivotal point for
healthier, more successful, and beneficial accomplishments both at the personal and
professional level. With strong will, we became capable of creating better narratives and
break the cycle of poverty, misfortune, and dysfunction.