No, I am not talking about the staircase under which Harry Porter grew up or stayed!
One of our mentoring partners told us us about a 13-year old girl in Northern India, who is academically high-achieving and very ambitious. This student was already pursuing a bachelor’s degree in science at such a young age, and is aspiring to become a doctor when she grows up. Wow, we all thought!
After getting her contact information, I gave the student a call and introduced myself as someone looking for ways to help her. She was so excited. It was so inspiring for me to hear her speak so confidently about her goals at such a tender age, in spite of being in such difficult circumstances. I was reminded of a quote from late Dr. Abdul Kalam, former President of India, a true inspirer and my adopted mentor:
“Look at the sky. We are not alone. The whole universe is friendly to us and conspires only to give the best to those who dream and work.”
May be that is why I got connected to her from thousands of miles away. RIP, Dr. Kalam!
After a few conversations with the student and gathering more details, my team and I reached out into our global network of mentors and found an awesome mentor living in the same city as this student. I explained the situation and requested the mentor to meet this student and family in person. Our mentor was shocked at what he found when he went looking!
The 13-year old student and her family live under the staircase on the top most floor of a local school. That’s their house – no doors or windows. Just a little space for 3 people.
Our mentor met with the girl and her family, and came away very inspired and with just one thought – this girl’s aspiration to become a doctor must be nurtured and shown the right path to become real. We reached out to donors we knew and stayed in touch with the student.
Call it Serendipity or the Power of Good Intentions. Magic happened soon after: She received several scholarships from generous individuals in and outside India. She was able to pursue her graduate studies, and recently became the youngest student to earn a Master of Science in Microbiology at age 15.
There are hundreds of millions of aspiring individuals like this student – in elite places like Silicon Valley as well as in remote corners of Africa and Asia. Magic happens when we are able to create systems and processes, to find and connect those individuals with experienced and passionate mentors from anywhere in the world.
We all have the power within us to make a difference to another individual. Take a moment and reach out to someone in need of guidance. Give them hope. Open doors for them by tapping into your network even if you don’t have the time or resources to commit to on your own. Its okay, just do it and you will be pleasantly surprised at what happens when you do that.
Let the universe do its thing of conspiring and making good things happen.
Curious to know more: Here is one of many stories on her that appeared in the media http://www.thebetterindia.com/26515/meet-15-year-old-sushma-indias-youngest-msc-child-prodigy/