Completely new PS, thoughts/criticisms appreciated
Posted: Fri Mar 14, 2014 11:42 pm
“Half Lebanese, half normal,” has been the running joke my father has told friends in regards to his children’s heritage. His comfort in making such a remark is a reflection of how much my mother’s Lebanese family has accepted this WASPy man. But it makes sense why they have welcomed my father -- although he is neither Lebanese nor Greek Orthodox, when my mother’s family immigrated from the Middle East in the early 20th century, they were in search of the freedoms that made it okay for my father to not be exactly like them.
Fast forward 110 years and here I am, the great-great-grandson of those Lebanese immigrants, my aim now set on becoming a lawyer. My desire to pursue a legal education has been enhanced over the last few years as I have worked in challenged neighborhoods, volunteered with at-risk youth, and invested my energy in mentoring. Even still, nothing would be more misleading than to think that my accomplishments alone have led me to this point. Let’s go back a little over a century to find answers.
Upon settling in Wichita in 1904 with his family, Yacoub Bayouth went door to door peddling everything from bed linens to dustpans, eventually making enough money to open Bayouth’s Grocery in 1915. Five years later, a girl named Zakia was sent from Lebanon on an arrangement to marry Yacoub’s only son, Ellis. Yacoub died in 1924, the same year that Ellis and Zakia’s first of their 11 children were born. Ellis carried on his father’s work, paying each of his children a flat rate of 25 cents per week.
Times were tough but the Bayouths were tougher, finding success even in the midst of heartbreak as 2 of the children died before the age of 6. On top of that, Ellis passed away at just 51 years of age, leaving his oldest son to be in charge of the family business. They were far from wealthy, but they sure had come a long way from the 11 years their grandfather spent selling household items on Wichita’s doorsteps. Even though all 9 of Ellis’s adult children spent their entire working life as grocers, the trend was soon to change.
The next generation brought my mother and her cousins, adding fifteen great-grandchildren to Yacoub Bayouth’s family tree. Although it had yet to be accomplished, an astounding 12 of the 14 adult children went on to earn a college degree. In less than 80 years, the Bayouths had gone from professional peddlers to, well, actual professionals.
In pursuing a legal education, I continue the legacy that my great-great-grandfather dreamed for his family. I never met Yacoub Bayouth, but I believe it was his work ethic passed down through generations that led me to work full-time selling cars at Kansas State. Just as he probably didn’t enjoy peddling door to door every day, I didn’t care for my work at the car dealership but we both reaped the fruits of our labors when he opened the grocery store after 11 years of peddling and when I graduated debt free after working 50 hour weeks while going to school.
I never knew Ellis Bayouth either, but there is reason to think it was the resiliency he instilled in his children that made me know that I needed to be strong when I was informed that the lab work originally thought to be only procedural was in fact cancerous. You never forget the moment someone tells you that you have cancer. I immediately began thinking of the last few weeks our family had with my grandfather before he eventually succumbed to his battle with pancreatic cancer. I thought of a childhood friend who fought hard before passing away at just 10 years old at the hands of a brain tumor. I couldn’t help but wonder if I could soon be facing a similar fate.
As crippling as the news seemed at the time, successful treatment and surgery brought not only a state of remission, but also a greater appreciation for health and a newfound vigor for life. I began finding the happiness in life not from material possessions or the pursuit of financial gain, but in making a positive impact on individuals and their communities.
I went from being the person that was quick to complain about societal issues to being the one who wanted to understand the struggles of inner city kids. My relationship with my “little brother,” De’Jay, began to not just be about going to the YMCA or to the swimming pool, but going deeper as his teachers began calling me to tell of his successes or when his mother would text me to share how proud she is of her son.
Linking up with organizations aimed at promoting equitable futures for all meant pushing me out of my comfort zone, getting outside of what felt normal and entering into a realm of vulnerability where I have since seen amazing personal growth. No longer complacent regarding what I thought I could not impact, I am now passionate for seeing positive change within communities. It is that passion that has led me to where I am today, eager at the opportunity to attend law school with plans of continuing that fervor for equity as an advocate for justice.
Fast forward 110 years and here I am, the great-great-grandson of those Lebanese immigrants, my aim now set on becoming a lawyer. My desire to pursue a legal education has been enhanced over the last few years as I have worked in challenged neighborhoods, volunteered with at-risk youth, and invested my energy in mentoring. Even still, nothing would be more misleading than to think that my accomplishments alone have led me to this point. Let’s go back a little over a century to find answers.
Upon settling in Wichita in 1904 with his family, Yacoub Bayouth went door to door peddling everything from bed linens to dustpans, eventually making enough money to open Bayouth’s Grocery in 1915. Five years later, a girl named Zakia was sent from Lebanon on an arrangement to marry Yacoub’s only son, Ellis. Yacoub died in 1924, the same year that Ellis and Zakia’s first of their 11 children were born. Ellis carried on his father’s work, paying each of his children a flat rate of 25 cents per week.
Times were tough but the Bayouths were tougher, finding success even in the midst of heartbreak as 2 of the children died before the age of 6. On top of that, Ellis passed away at just 51 years of age, leaving his oldest son to be in charge of the family business. They were far from wealthy, but they sure had come a long way from the 11 years their grandfather spent selling household items on Wichita’s doorsteps. Even though all 9 of Ellis’s adult children spent their entire working life as grocers, the trend was soon to change.
The next generation brought my mother and her cousins, adding fifteen great-grandchildren to Yacoub Bayouth’s family tree. Although it had yet to be accomplished, an astounding 12 of the 14 adult children went on to earn a college degree. In less than 80 years, the Bayouths had gone from professional peddlers to, well, actual professionals.
In pursuing a legal education, I continue the legacy that my great-great-grandfather dreamed for his family. I never met Yacoub Bayouth, but I believe it was his work ethic passed down through generations that led me to work full-time selling cars at Kansas State. Just as he probably didn’t enjoy peddling door to door every day, I didn’t care for my work at the car dealership but we both reaped the fruits of our labors when he opened the grocery store after 11 years of peddling and when I graduated debt free after working 50 hour weeks while going to school.
I never knew Ellis Bayouth either, but there is reason to think it was the resiliency he instilled in his children that made me know that I needed to be strong when I was informed that the lab work originally thought to be only procedural was in fact cancerous. You never forget the moment someone tells you that you have cancer. I immediately began thinking of the last few weeks our family had with my grandfather before he eventually succumbed to his battle with pancreatic cancer. I thought of a childhood friend who fought hard before passing away at just 10 years old at the hands of a brain tumor. I couldn’t help but wonder if I could soon be facing a similar fate.
As crippling as the news seemed at the time, successful treatment and surgery brought not only a state of remission, but also a greater appreciation for health and a newfound vigor for life. I began finding the happiness in life not from material possessions or the pursuit of financial gain, but in making a positive impact on individuals and their communities.
I went from being the person that was quick to complain about societal issues to being the one who wanted to understand the struggles of inner city kids. My relationship with my “little brother,” De’Jay, began to not just be about going to the YMCA or to the swimming pool, but going deeper as his teachers began calling me to tell of his successes or when his mother would text me to share how proud she is of her son.
Linking up with organizations aimed at promoting equitable futures for all meant pushing me out of my comfort zone, getting outside of what felt normal and entering into a realm of vulnerability where I have since seen amazing personal growth. No longer complacent regarding what I thought I could not impact, I am now passionate for seeing positive change within communities. It is that passion that has led me to where I am today, eager at the opportunity to attend law school with plans of continuing that fervor for equity as an advocate for justice.