This is an inspirational story about the trials of a young man from Afghanistan who faced incredible obstacles head-on, never complaining, never waiting for others to help him. In fact, he helped his sisters. And now, he’s being rewarded for his character and self-reliance with a college scholarship.
“Our family economy suffered from many factors, like lack of employment in the country, my father’s illiteracy, ethnic discrimination, insecurity, et cetera,” Shahidy told FoxNews.com from his home in Kabul. “As a result, my four sisters and I started home-based carpet weaving in order to support the family.”
While his family struggled to get by, Shahidy found a way to excel at school. He fashioned notebooks out of posters and flyers from political campaigns. When electricity to their home was shut down every night at 10 p.m., he literally burned the midnight oil – doing homework by the light of a lamp. When he became the first member of his family to graduate high school, he was near the top of his class.
There’s a lesson for Americans in this young man’s story.
