During my time in college, I encountered several setbacks and obstacles along the way.
"Abuelita, how did you overcome them? What motivated you?", asked one of my granddaughters.
While I had the ganas to succeed, there were difficult moments. Many people find their strength through family, as did I.
Additionally, I found resilience through different stories my mother would tell me. When my granddaughter asked me the question, I was reminded of the story my mother told me about a fella named George Swanson Starling.
George was motivated to go to college. However, due to economic circumstances, George had to drop out and return to the groves in Florida, which is where my mother met him. George would rally the people to protest working until they were paid a fair wage for their work, long before Cesar Chavez organized anyone around the 1960s. This led to a better pay for farmworkers. This also led to farm owners hating George. Word spread that George, along with his friends, would be lynched for the uprising they were causing. All three friends fled Florida so as to not risk their lives in staying.
Through his appreciation for education and his organizing, George Swanson Starling inspired me.
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