Life Is...A Journey Worth Fighting For

By Sofia Villarreal

Life Is . . . A Journey Worth Fighting For Everyone has a story to tell. Whether we are young or old, our story began the moment we took our first breath. Every one of us chooses the life that we want to live and the story that we want to leave behind the moment we take our last breath. The story of our life is what we make it as we live and learn each day. Life is a journey of personal growth and learning experiences. It is about lessons learned and actions taken to improve the quality of life. This book will take you through a teenage girl's journey through life. Her struggles continued after she dropped out of school, got married at the age of fifteen going on sixteen, and becoming a young teenage mother who managed to finish high school and ultimately obtain a PhD. Both she and her husband were also struck with cancer, but no matter what obstacles came her way, she continued to trust in God and kept moving forward with many dreams for her future. Some facets of life such as life is an opportunity, beauty, a dream, a game, a promise, sorrow, a song, a struggle, a tragedy, an adventure, luck, too precious, life is life, fight for it are words that spoke to her as she came across a poem that inspired her to write this book. She immediately began reflecting on her life and making connections to the words and her interpretation of the message in the poem. A feeling overcame her as if the poem was telling her life story. She experienced the facets of life stated above at different stages in her life and in different situations. As a result, she came to the conclusion that life is a journey worth fighting for. Life is not perfect, and people should not pretend that it is. Some have to work harder than others in order to facilitate their journey through life. Challenges such as bullying, growing pains, dropping out of school, dealing with a failed relationship or marriage, loss of income or job, job reassignment, drug abuse, alcoholism, getting older, and disease are just a few of the struggles that we may experience at different points in life. At times, we may have to put up a good fight and not give up by overcoming obstacles that may interfere with the quality of life, the life God wants for us that will ultimately lead us to eternal life. No matter what age one may be or what obstacles come our way, we should never stop dreaming.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Sep 12, 2018
• ISBN: 9781642588378

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Life Is...A Journey Worth Fighting For

Sofia Villarreal

ISBN 978-1-64258-836-1 (paperback)

ISBN 978-1-64258-837-8 (digital)

Copyright © 2018 by Sofia Villarreal

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,

distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including

photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods

without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission

requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973,

1978, 1984, 2011, by Biblica, Inc. ® Used by permission. All rights

reserved worldwide.

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016.

Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of

Good News Publishers.

Printed in the United States of America

Everyone has a story to tell. Whether we are young or old, our story began the moment we took our first breath. Every one of us chooses the life that we want to live and the story that we want to leave behind the moment we take our last breath.

—Sofia Villarreal, PhD

Dedication

I  dedicate this book to my wonderful husband, Lionel, who is my pillar of hope. You are a wonderful man, and I love you with all my heart. You have always supported me, even the few times that I thought you weren’t. You helped me grow and taught me many valuable lessons.

I also dedicate this book to my wonderful children Betty, Leo, and Darlene. You have been amazing children, and I am proud of your accomplishments, but more importantly, I am proud of your commitment to God and the choices you have made. I am so blessed that you chose wonderful partners to marry. Arnold, Macarena, and David thank you for joining our crazy fun-loving family and loving my children as much as I love them.

To my adorable grandchildren Arnold, Victoria, Andrey, Alex, and Lea, you have been a blessing to our family. This silly and young-at-heart glam-ma loves you and dedicates these life lessons to you. May you learn from them as you journey through your own life.

Additionally, I dedicate this book to my parents and siblings. Dad, thank you, for being an amazing father. You are now in heaven, but your memory will live in my heart forever. Mom, your memory may be fading slowly, but you always seem to give me words of wisdom and cheer me up. You have always believed in me and have inspired me to continue to be of service to others. To my amazing family, thank you for all your support, you have truly been my inspiration. Let us all keep journeying through life together and making memories. Annabel, my dear sister and friend, you have lived a life of miracles; I encourage you to write your story and share it with others someday. I admire your courage.

Finally, I dedicate this book to one of the most important mentors in my life, God. He held my hand and guided me along the way. I have never been alone. I will worship you forever. This book is my way of thanking the Lord for allowing me to experience all facets of life and finding my true meaning of life so that I can share with you.

Acknowledgments

Thanks to my family, colleagues, and friends for being part of my life. The experiences and lessons that I have learned throughout my journey have been very valuable for my personal and professional growth. You have helped me discover who I am as a person and what I value most. The relationships that I have acquired and individuals that I have met have been very instrumental in my life. You have touched my heart in ways that I will treasure forever. As you journey through your life, take time to find your inner beauty and portray that beauty as you fulfill your promise to self and others. Blessings on your journey as you discover your life’s purpose.

Introduction

"Life is a succession of lessons

which must be lived to be understood."

—Helen Keller

Life is a journey that everyone goes through. The path we take in life is different for each and every one of us. No two lives are exactly alike, although we may undergo similar experiences. Some facets of my journey through life are featured in the words found in an inspirational poem by Mother Teresa and words featured in quotes by Sai Baba. My aha moment occurred one day when I was moving into a new office in a different building and decided to go shopping for new decor. I was looking for motivational quotes that would inspire me and those who entered my office. I came across a poem titled Life Is . . .. I immediately knew that it was the perfect piece for my office due to the inspirational words it embraced. This beautifully framed poem and artwork autographed by John Jones, which hangs on my freshly painted walls became my daily inspiration.

Although we try to live a perfect life, reality is, life is not perfect and we should not pretend that it is. Sometimes we may need those daily reminders even though we may be intrinsically motivated and have a personal relationship with God. Do not be mistaken—the best daily inspiration is found in our Bible, and we should dedicate time daily to learn more about the Word of God.

The story of our life is what we make it as we live and learn each day. Life is a journey of personal growth and learning experiences. It is about lessons learned and actions taken to improve the quality of life. Some facets of life such as life is an opportunity, beauty, a dream, a game, a promise, sorrow, a song, a struggle, a tragedy, an adventure, luck, too precious, life is life, fight for it are the words that spoke to me as I read the poem. I immediately began reflecting on my life and making connections to the words and my interpretation of the message in the poem. A feeling overcame me as if the poem was telling my life story.

I had been contemplating for two years whether to share my story and experiences or not, but I finally decided it was time, based on all the messages I received first and foremost from the Lord and my surroundings. Sometimes daily reminders and messages are all around us, yet we fail to see them. We should listen to them and not miss an opportunity to do something great. My inspiration to write this book is a force that can’t be explained, but for some reason, I decided to share some aspects of my life with you.

Chapter 1

Benefiting from Opportunities

Every day is an opportunity to make a new beginning.

—Author unknown

Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

—Galatians 6:10 (NIV)

Opportunities are all around us. Our journey through life introduces us to many opportunities. I remember growing up and thinking the world was going to be perfect. As I went through grade school, life seemed pretty normal as I went through my everyday routines. As far as I can remember, I had a happy childhood. Middle school seemed to be much of the same, although many seem to think that the middle school years are the toughest. It was not until my sophomore year in high school that I started to reflect on my life. I was the second child and the oldest daughter out of eight children. My mother was a first-grade teacher and very dedicated to her profession. My dad was a truck driver for a large company, and later in life, he worked for the county as a foreman in one of the precincts.

When I was a teenager, I remember playing the mother role many times and tending to all my brothers and sisters. I recall doing the household chores and cooking for my family. This gave me the opportunity to learn how to do chores and how to cook. It also taught me responsibility. My mom always did all the laundry. She actually hand washed and used a galvanized metal washboard to remove all stains from the cloth. Our cloth always smelled nice and crisp. My mom also maintained a beautiful garden. She was an outdoor person and would spend much of her time outdoors washing in the old-fashioned wringer washing machine and hanging the cloth on a clothesline that seemed to go on for miles. Washing and tending to the garden simultaneously was what Mom loved to do. She was a perfectionist and expected things to be done right. My dad was a strict disciplinarian, but he instilled high morals and ethical values.

The day I turned fifteen years old was the day that I realized that my life was not like my friends’ life. My experiences were very different from theirs. I had to help raise a family, they did things that other teenagers do. They talked about their life and the fun things such as skating and sports. This did not match my daily routines. They had friends, participated in extracurricular activities, and lived the so-called teenage life.

I tried very hard to live the teenage life during my middle school years; in fact, I tried out for cheerleading without my parents’ consent, but did not make it during seventh grade. I had prayed all night because cheering was something that I really wanted to do. Having friends, laughing, cheering, and just having a good time would distract me from all my responsibilities at home. I wanted to balance my life, and this would be a perfect opportunity to have some fun in my life. I did not want to be a disobedient child by trying out, but I had figured out that if I made it for cheerleading, I would tell my parents at that time.

During eighth grade, without my parents’ consent, I decided to try out for cheerleading for the second time. I didn’t give up; I was determined to be a cheerleader. I competed, and to my surprise, I made it. My dream was realized as my name was announced. I could see myself cheering in front of the whole school. I couldn’t wait to get home to tell my parents. Finally, after dinner, I told them that I had tried out for cheerleading and had made it. They had no idea that I had tried out during my seventh-grade year and how disappointed I was when I didn’t make it. I dealt with sorrow for most of my seventh-grade year.

When I got the courage to tell my parents, my dad was very upset and told me that I was not going to be a cheerleader. I begged and begged him to allow me to cheer; he said no. I pleaded to my mother to allow me to participate in extracurricular activities, but her hands were tied; my dad had already said no, and there was no negotiating. I was a good daughter; I did everything they asked me to do and was not disobedient. I knew they loved me, but I was just a kid who wanted more out of life. I went to bed that night with a broken heart. How could this be happening to me?

Early the next morning after a sleepless night of tossing and turning trying to figure out what to do, I had a clever idea. I asked my parents if I could participate in the pep squad and take my four sisters to the games with me. This would allow us to cheer and chant to promote school spirit. I had to use all my skills to get what I wanted. Who wants to give up on life? Not me. I was a fighter; the crab in me has to pull out the pincers once in a while. They thought about it for a while and agreed. What choice did they have? After all, I was taking the whole army with me. At least I was going to have an opportunity to cheer. I remember my mother taking us to buy fabric for the uniforms for all five girls. We had to buy the whole bulk of red fabric. She even had to buy five body shirts and five pairs of white socks and tennis—oh, and ribbons for our hair. The seamstress did an awesome job with all the uniforms; we looked amazing together as sisters. If you can imagine five girls thirteen through three years of age, we were a sight to see. Can you picture what I went through? Having to take all my sisters and caring for them at the games was not easy. Oh well, it was fun anyway.

Although my parents did not allow me to be a cheerleader, I opened the door for my sisters to participate in extracurricular activities. Three of my sisters became cheerleaders; in fact, all three were head cheerleaders, and one of them was a twirler, thanks to their big sister, "me," for leading the way for others to follow. I trained them well. If one door closes, another door will open; don’t miss an opportunity to experience life. Use your decision-making and problem-solving skills and compromise where all parties involved will benefit. This will create a win-win situation and facilitate your journey through life. Reflecting on these memories makes me see things differently now.

I remember sitting in the back porch one day reflecting and crying. Why was my life so different? I had to struggle for everything I wanted. This particular day was a very special day for me, but I felt as if it had been forgotten. It was my fifteenth birthday. Many of my friends celebrated their fifteenth birthday or quince, also known as a coming-of-age celebration, and often shared pictures of the great event. My only desire was to have a small party with lots of friends, a birthday cake, and lots of gifts, but that didn’t happen.

Three weeks before my special day, my mom had just given birth to my baby brother. He became ill after birth; in fact, we almost lost him. After a couple of weeks in the hospital, my baby brother was finally coming home. Although this was a very special day for the family, I was somewhat sad because I thought that no one had remembered my birthday. As I glanced up and wiped my tears, I saw my dad’s truck driving in with a crib on the back of the pickup. When my mom got off the truck, she had the most beautiful bundle of joy wrapped in baby blue blankets anyone had ever seen. My dad was right behind her, all smiles on his face.

Dad was holding something in his hands. What was he holding, I thought? He walked straight toward me and handed me a beautiful fluffy stuffed animal and said, Happy birthday. They had remembered my birthday after all. My parents were on a very tight budget, and my dad said, This stuffed animal was a free gift we received for buying the crib. But that did not matter to me. I might not have celebrated my birthday with a cake, friends, and lots of gifts, but the important thing was that they had remembered my special day. This was another opportunity for me to be grateful for having such wonderful parents and a loving God who healed my baby brother and brought happiness to our family.

Almost a year later, as my fifteenth birthday was coming to an end, I met a very special boy named Lionel at a dance. This was the first time that my parents actually allowed me to go to a dance with my next-door friend and her family. I had never had a boyfriend, and when I met Lionel, I immediately fell in love. I guess it was love at first sight. He actually had a girlfriend at the time, but I didn’t know. A couple of weeks after the dance, a close friend of Lionel called me and told me that Lionel wanted to know if I could be his girlfriend. Of course, I said yes. We secretly spoke on the phone every opportunity we had for about three months in between all the chores I had to do. He also visited me at school on two occasions during lunch.

I remember the day Lionel was having a birthday and went to see me at school on his special day. I gave him a quick hug as he arrived, and of course, he stole an innocent birthday kiss. All of a sudden, I looked up and