Perseverance is West’s goal for December. My definition of perseverance is, don’t give up when you’re trying your hardest, and push through the challenges to succeed. 

Now here is what Mrs. Davies had to say, “…So I think people outside of West think that students at West don’t have something to persevere over or in the face of, and I think that ignores that fact that a lot of students have experienced a lot of things in life that aren’t obvious to everybody.”

Like I know many of our students of color experienced racism. These students have to persevere against racist comments on a regular basis and I know our LGBTQ+ students often have to deal with discrimination and they have to persevere about that on a daily basis. 

But then I think there are some things that are maybe less obvious as well, or less outward than students who have experience loss, or who are struggling, or students whose parents are struggling. We have to decide every day to come to school to do our best and try to overcome the obstacles that are in front of us. So I think many students at West are constantly overcoming things and I am in awe of how much strength the students here have and their ability to overcome diversity or racism and bias and overcome issues of grief and trauma. The students here are amazing.”

I like what Mrs. Davies has to say because it recognizes that some people of a different race struggle with racism. She also sees others who struggle with anxiety, depression, and other obstacles while pushing through day to day, and those who persevere, through these obstacles to me, are the ones who shine above all else.

I wrote this because, I want others to know what some people are going through and to know not everyone is the same as others, and some have more obstacles than others to work through. You should also treat everyone with kindness even though you may be going through a rough time. Just remember never give up, and do your best to get up, and keep going! Just be kind, because you never know how much someone needs it.