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My name is Laeeqah Charles and I am a Young MOTivator from the College of Cape Town, Crawford Campus.
During my primary school years, I was constantly the one being picked on and bullied. It all started when I was in Grade 1. My mother used to sell things at school. A classmate threatened to take my crayons and if I didn’t give them to her, she would tell her mom not to pay for the things they ordered from my mother. As the year went on the children started cutting my hair, would break my things and would take my money from me. In grade 7, I was smacked by a girl because I had no money to give her.
I never had a great high school experience. I always thought that I won’t fit in. I never saw myself as important and had a very low self-esteem with no self-confidence. This all led to the point of me taking drugs and dropping out of school in 2015 while I was in Grade 10.
I refused to go to school after that even with my family motivating me to do so. In 2017, I decided to study at the College of Cape Town, Crawford Campus and this was the best decision ever since it allowed me to participate in the MOT Programmes. It made me believe in myself and made me realise that I have a purpose in life!
In 2018, I was selected to attend the 3-day Young MOTivators’ Education with 12 others from my college. I learned and experienced so much at the camp and just the fact that I was chosen to be a leader out of all the others meant a lot to me!
My advice to those who have been or are still victim to bullying is to please speak to someone you can trust no matter how hard the situation is. There is always a way out.
I would also like to motivate all of you reading this to not give up on yourself no matter what! Even if you fall, it is never too late to get up! Always focus on your goals and dreams and cut out the negativity.
Lastly, I would like to thank MOT for giving me the opportunity to find the courage to believe in myself and to find myself again. Thank you for giving me the platform to share my story. Today I can proudly say I am grateful for that I have got the chance to be a part of MOT.
#Courage2bReal
Explore this captivating poem prepared by the talented MOT Youth from Gardens Commercial High School, skillfully crafted by Kino Moni and Bilqees Miller. The Courage to Care First day of school, early in the morn’Sitting together in the school hallAlong came a teacher, but oh we were wrongThis joyous soul came in with a song […]
This month’s MOT Youth Blogger of the Month presents a captivating and heartfelt poem written by our Young MOTivator, Preston Saayman. This powerful poem, written during our Young MOTivators’ Education (Youth Leadership Camp) in 2019, serves as a testament to the remarkable impact of MOT and its invaluable work. Today, Preston says that his motivation […]
We are thrilled to introduce our Youth Blogger of the Month, Lucia Rangwedi. She is a former electrical engineering student from the College of Cape Town, a Young MOTivator and MOT Coach who has embraced the MOT core values and has made a significant impact in her life. Hi, I’m Lucia Rangwedi, and I’m excited […]