Life in general is already hard and challenging. People are often complaining about how their lives are so miserable and worthless. But most problems that these people are experiencing are also being felt by people with disabilities.
Today, we will look at one story of a person who have experienced a lot of difficulties in life yet was able to stand up with hope, faith, and dignity.
Let’s Get Started
Few weeks ago, we have been able to interview the person that will share her story to us. The name of this person is Maricor Olivares. She is 27 years and currently working as a chat support representative from a respective company.
Maricor belongs to person with disability community because she has a Bipolar Disorder (BPD). It is a mental impairment characterized by a long-term pattern of unstable relationships, distorted sense of self, and strong emotional reactions. Those affected often engage in self-harm and other dangerous behavior. (Wikipedia).
Despite of her condition, she still loves to ride a bike, watch movies, to read books, write different literatures, and paint lovely things like butterflies and flowers. She also loves to bake different pastries and goodies.
Aside from those things, she is also quite a musician because one of her pastime hobbies is to play Kalimba (percussion instrument). Maricor does not stop pursuing and doing what she loves even with her condition.
During our interview, we asked her some questions and her answers are all wonderful and inspiring. The first question that we asked Maricor was about dignity. We asked her to share her opinions about it.
According to her,
“Dignity can be equated to self-esteem. As a PWD there are things that can be limiting in our situation. These limitations can bring forth certain thinking that we are below "normal" people. It is important for a person, PWD or not, to have the honor for themselves. As they say, no one can truly believe in you, if you do not believe what you are capable of. “
Based on her answer, we can truly say that Maricor is a fighter and believer. She did not stop on believing on herself and her capabilities. The self-confidence that she has is impressive despite of her condition.
But before she had that strong confidence, she told us not that her life is not a walk in the park even today. When she first had the diagnosis of her condition, she has to stop her college years and take a rest.
Maricor was a full scholar student but she has to give it up for her to recuperate. In other words, she was not able to finish her studies on time. But she continued to dream and aim higher despite of her diagnosis.
She promised herself that she would not go back to college unless it is University of the Philippines. As her condition is getting better and it is already controlled, she strives harder than before. As a result, she was able to get a job in one of the famous call centers in the country.
With all the hard work she is doing, God blesses her with an opportunity to go back to college with her dream school. The company that she is working to have an educational assistance program to their employees.
To make the story short, last 2018, she was able to graduate and finished her course at University of the Philippines Open University. According to Maricor, finishing her studies is the achievement that she is so proud of.
This achievement made her strong and filled with hope for the future. Despite of her condition, she is now living with faith and dignity. She had this confidence on herself that no one could steal from her.
Before our interview with Maricor ends, we asked her if she have another dream that she is aiming for. She said that the one dream that I longed for today is to have a family of her own wherein she will have children to take care of and tell all her wonderful stories.
As we end our conversation with Maricor, she tells something amazing that she wanted her fellow PWDs to know. She wanted every PWD to understand that life is meant to be enjoyed. Therefore, they should just go with what their heart feels right.
Story Takeaways
After knowing the story of Maricor and her challenges that she has faced, there are lessons that we can get from it. One of the greatest lessons that we can get from her story is to never stop believing on your dreams and on your capabilities.
Even though she has been diagnosed with BPD, she did not stop pursuing her goals and continue to believe and to have faith in God. No disability can hinder her from doing what she loves.
Therefore, if you are in a situation wherein you are doubting yourself, don’t stop believing that you can do it too. Just keep moving forward and don’t let the challenges stop you. Live your life to the fullest with faith, hope, and dignity.
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