Monday, October 26, 2009

'finding nemo'?

Fish are very resilient animals you know.
-Veda, My Girl



I’m not sure that quote has any bearing on it but if it does, I do not consider myself a fish. When life gets me down, I get down. Not gonna lie about it. The past two weeks or so have proven I am not immune to a case of the blues. My grandmother died, my work reflected my inadequacies, and in general I felt low in self esteem. I don't know when I last felt so depressed. But whenever I find myself sinking, feeling like the weight of my troubles will not relent, I find strength in my friends and family who have proven themselves as proper fish, resilient despite the children who tap on their glass bowls, despite the loud water filter, despite the toilet bowl looming in the darkness… I think we all need people in our lives who remind us how to get up, how to keep going, how to remember our own strength by finding inspiration in theirs. I dedicate this blog to all the Nemo's I have found in my life, resilient, swimming despite the harsh currents and mean fish out there...

Fish 1: Sunny--She has been through so much with her family and yet she keeps chugging along. Not only does she chug, she does it with classsss, bitches. And she keeps a smile on her face and makes everyone around her laugh. Considering what she goes through in life and the people she continues to support with love and hard work, she would be an inspiration to a lot of us...

Fish 2: Lisa's parents--Lisa herself inspires me with her go-go-go energy and constant smile... but when I think of her parents I feel incredibly humbled. They were refugees from Cambodia and escaped what could have been a tumultuous life for the unknown in America... They came here with $5 and built an incredible life for themselves. They can make anybody's bad day look like a Sundae with a cherry on top.

Fish 3: Mom--My mother has been my most important role model. She always had a tough shell around her when we grew up... because she had to have a tough shell. She was battling so many different obstacles everyday and struggling with so many different problems and she still managed to be a great mother. She learned English by studying the captions on TV when she was alone in a foreign country; her first job in America was at PizzaHut where she put her new English skills to work and scrapped and saved to feed her 5 hungry, whiny kids while gross Hayward guys made sleazy remarks; she helped raise her siblings and manage her household when she was growing up; and on a daily level, she has never let her insecurities get the best of her, nor let her fears conquer her, nor let her sad days envelope her. She's been a pillar of continuous strength and, for being someone to model that for me, I thank her.
She is the ultimate fish.

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