tally777

Май 23

(со страницы vickylovesmichael)

Michael Jackson and John Travolta

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myinspirationmj:

Story from the archives ~”New Shoes & Big Dreams:” ~ Michael said that even helping one person was making a difference and in this story we hear just how much of a difference one small gift from Michael made to a 10 yr old’s life and dreams. This is only a small except from Lidia’s complete story which is an exceptional one and the full story is at the link and well worth reading ~

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In Lidia Kight’s childhood, there were no vacations to Disney World, no piles of Christmas presents, no closets stuffed with shoes and clothing. She was born in a one-room shack with dirt floors, and she was lucky to have food in her belly or a pencil to take to school.

Lidia grew up in the Dominican Republic, barely a two-hour flight from Miami, but it might as well have been another planet. Now 41 and living in Jackson, Lidia has a driver’s license, a high school diploma, a job and a college degree in the works. She has carpeting on the floor, a refrigerator full of food, a hot shower every morning — and a big story to tell about how she got to this point in her life.

It started with a new pair of shoes and a dream.

Lidia’s family often traveled the dirt paths down the mountain to the city, where they tried to sell or exchange whatever goods they had. It was a rough trip for Lidia, especially as she got older — her classmates teased her, and she never had proper shoes for the arduous trip. Her toes are still curled under from the years she spent trying to cram her big-girl feet into the child-size shoes donated by charities. She remembers feeling resentful during her childhood, wondering why God had given her such a hard life.

“I had these plastic shoes that made a squeaky noise on the hot pavement. I wanted what they had, what looked better to me,” says Lidia. “Why did I have to be on a donkey full of food, yelling, ‘I’ve got tomatoes, I’ve got papayas!’ For many years, I wanted to hide under that donkey’s tail. That’s what I wanted to do.”

When she was about 10 years old, volunteers came to her village and measured the children’s feet, promising to return with brand-new shoes made just for them.

“I couldn’t believe somebody was going to send me that — it was kind of like, I’ve heard that before,” says Lidia. Many mission trips came to the Dominican Republic but either didn’t make it to her village or didn’t have anything for Lidia. This time, though, there was something for Lidia: her first pair of new shoes.

The shoes came from a project sponsored by Michael Jackson. Lidia and the other children also received a pair of socks, a backpack full of school supplies and a small boombox that played Jackson’s music.

From then on, Lidia’s life was different. School was fun because she had new paper, crayons and shoes, and she didn’t have to feel embarrassed for having nothing. She says the shoes and music were proof that there was a better way of life for her, somewhere. Her own friends were already starting to have babies, falling into the same old pattern of poverty and sadness. Lidia knew she deserved better.

“A seed was planted in my heart. I knew I needed to get out of there,” she says. “I was determined to change something, and it was not going to happen if I stayed in the Dominican Republic. I came to believe I could do it.”

What kept her pursuing her goals, when most of us would give up after one or two fails? Once again, says Lidia, it goes back to her first pair of shoes and what she learned from a stranger’s care and generosity.

“(Michael Jackson) inspired me to dream, when I didn’t think I was allowed to do it. I wasn’t taught to dream,” says Lidia. “I’m thankful that I’m at a place in my life now where I can better myself … and I don’t think God has brought me here to just stop.”

For Lidia’s full story read at link ~

http://www.semissourian.com/story/1748399.html

First posted UK loves MJ 1st August 2011

via UK Loves MJ

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