Becoming by Michelle Obama

When I first picked up Becoming, an autobiography of Michelle Obama, I knew I was in for a reading journey which has in so many ways, opened my eyes and mind about how education and having a voice can bring about a change in the society for the greater good, and most importantly, a change in us. The book starts with her elucidating her childhood, where she grew up in the South Shore neighbourhood of Chicago with simple aspirations, at a time where America was undergoing a massive shift, with riots happening across the country, and white families moving out of the neighbourhood in search for better schools and opportunities. But amongst the bedlam, she fondly recollects her time spent there with her father, mother and brother, her music lessons with her aunt, nights spent playing games and reading, and frequent visits to her extended family on both sides. She was a victim of gender discrimination as she grew up to high school, and this manifested to fear of how she would be perceived by those around her. It led her to fuel and drive her efforts into achieving her goals. Her parents taught her to identify her objectives, devote efforts to achieve them, to work around, over, or through obstacles. She was expected to own her smartness, and not just be smart, to exhibit it with pride, and this reflected on how she spoke or voiced herself. It was this principle that led her to excel throughout school, graduate from Princeton University, pursue her J. D degree from Harvard Law School, become a lawyer at Sidley and Austin, and ultimately helped her be the most reminisced First Lady the country has ever seen. Through her book, she emphasises on how cardinal education is- how it has the power to change the face of an economy. She expresses her views on women empowerment, to help women and girls alike get equal opportunities, and has sparked a credence in so many African American women, that they have a voice, and it mattered. She has seen America like never before while she was First Lady.

The world knows her as a former First Lady of the United States of America, but her book takes us through her story, her journey as a little girl- a girl who defied all odds to be who she aspired to be even after being condescended to not aspire high, a student- who ensured that she had a voice which should be heard, a lawyer and a builder of public allies- who worked tirelessly and set fundraising records that stood for a long time even after she left, a First Lady- who used her position as a platform to bring about various initiatives for the greater good of the country and a mother- who raised two daughters to be confident, independent individuals of their own. It bequeaths many moments for readers to look for motivation, with many lessons to take away and implement. The most awed aspect of the book for me was how it teaches us to see optimism in the face of adversity, and how it has the power to help us face and overcome the same. I realised through her story how education gives confidence, confidence that sometimes can be called from within. The title ‘Becoming’ truly culminates her entire book, of how each and every moment or situation we experience first-hand, ultimately makes us who we are now. We become something- that something being unique to every person. Everybody has a story to share, and her book taught me to take pride in the same, even if it isn’t perfect or ideal, as she quotes ‘Your story is what you have, what you will always have. It’s something to own.’ She’ll always be an ideal, an icon, for many generations to come.