My Story !!

I think the part of my story that I wish to share is my experience with failure. As a child, I was very reserved, but I always knew that I wanted to make a positive impact. I saw acts of kindness from my mother and grandmother, who nurtured the children in the community without any expectation of a reward. I remember spending Christmas Eve (my birthday) wrapping gifts for all the children in the community, which gave me so much purpose.

My first brush with leadership came when my vice principal, Mrs. Porter, gave me the opportunity to teach my year 11 English class. Unfortunately, failure reared its ugly head when I developed an intense urge to become a prefect. I was shy but knew I could be a mentor for younger students and desperately wanted to be selected. Year after year, I was not chosen. One day, a student told me that the staff lead for prefects had called me. However, the student was mistaken; she had called a fellow classmate, Keneisha, instead of me, Kedesha. When I showed up at the meeting, the staff lead exclaimed in front of everyone, "What are you doing here?" I stammered, saying, "Miss, a student said that you called me." She told me in no uncertain terms that she did nothing of the sort and excused me. I left the room with my head hanging down, while my schoolmates laughed loudly.

Despite this setback, I went on to launch the first and only charity outreach project at The Denbigh High School, a legacy that still exists today. I then attended the University of the West Indies, where my passion for service was recognised by my peers. In my first year, I was voted in as the leader of the Craig town mentorship group and later became the lead for outreach on my cluster. However, failure struck again, and I had to discontinue my studies due to financial constraints. During those years, I was extremely stressed and failing most of my exams (when I did get a chance to sit them). I started hiding from my colleagues and pretended that I was attending exams to avoid the embarrassment.

In my last year of studies, I met my husband, who encouraged me to take a break. After a few years, a strange series of events one day in downtown Kingston led me to become a student at the Mico Teachers' College. This time, I excelled academically despite financial challenges. I became the faculty representative for the science faculty and, in my final year, was elected as the acclaimed "Madam Senior Lady," the 1st Vice President of the Student Guild. During my tenure at Mico, I mentored and led hundreds of students, many of whom have gone on to become esteemed colleagues. I have learned so much about myself, failure, and my purpose.

After leaving Mico, I became a teacher at Kingston College, where I started the first student-led cultural event called "An Evening of Expression." I helped students to plan and execute this event, which provided them with a platform to showcase their talents and creativity.

In 2019, I left Jamaica to teach in the United Kingdom, which itself is another story of ups and downs. Today, I am an author (Tally's Good Hair), the staff lead for student prefects and parliament, the youth social action leader, and the curriculum leader for PSHE & RSE education. I am still a learner, but I am becoming an even better leader. I am becoming more comfortable with failure because one thing I know for sure is that "failure is never fatal, success is never final. You are judged on your next performance." I have lost a lot on my journey, but I have also gained so much. Life is good because I am here, and I can't wait to see what is on the other side of failure.

I still walk into rooms where people question my presence and my competence ("Why are you here? Who do you think you are?"), but I always remember that my value remains intact. My life's purpose is to live life to the fullest, and when I leave here, I want to be remembered for the lives that I have impacted.

Author: Kedesha Blake-Huggins