How To Turn Your Dreams Into Reality Speech | Sheri Prentiss | Goalcast

Dr. Sheri Prentiss, a Breast Cancer Survivor gives a powerful speech to our future generation about breathing new life into dying hope.

Video Script:

instead of dowling 9-1-1 I pulled out my life insurance policy climbed in bed and said my prayers so I managed to live a very full life with my beautiful family until October 1st 2008 I found a lump in my right breast that's when everything changed it was cancer but there was one person in particular who always kept me driven even when I tried to give up Yvonne was born in Sharon Mississippi great grandchild of slaves married at 15 had a first child at 16 she endured repeated domestic violence but for fear of the lives of her children didn't run until they were safely tucked away although her life was ahead of her she was living for her children wanting to set an example for her two daughters and her two sons she would not allow other societal role models to set the paths for her children Yvonne decided to live in her own power five years after her last child was born she received her GED scoring in the top 5% of all people who had ever taken the test since it started she received straight A's in all courses leading to an associate's degree and she went on to become one of the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission x' leading systemic investigators and I was fascinated by her tenacity and incentivized by her actions for two reasons first I too have two daughters and was a single parent after a failed marriage secondly Yvonne is my mom she died while I was going through chemo after just three rounds of chemo I was home alone and developed crushing chest pain instead of dowling nine-one-one poured out my life insurance policy climbed in bed and said my prayers after about six hours much to my dismay I woke up that night when I wanted to die I was tired of the fight and I did not want to live without my mom but I truly believe that if I don't give life my all she will rise up come and find me and knock some sense into me pain can cause us to be so selfish because in that moment I couldn't see how my dying would cause my daughters to live without theirs but in my mom's life and even in her death I was able to find my purpose I changed my outlook and I found that people can alter their lives by altering their attitudes your parents would never want you to view their lives as a failure but you are not a failure because you try something and it doesn't work out you failed only when you stop trying but just when I was getting back on track lymphedema said it the lymph nodes and my right arm had been completely destroyed between the surgery and radiation leaving me with permanent severe swelling of my right arm hand and fingers the swelling made performing the clinical aspects of my job impossible the job I've always wanted since I was two I'm forced to wear compression garments daily in order to control the swelling and to add insult to injury at the time my boss told me Cherie a physician who was not clinically capable is of no value to me I had the great pleasure of less than one year later of informing him that I was now the national spokesperson for the Susan G Komen three-day the world's largest breast cancer organization as a physician and a patient I changed my perspective I want you to be bold in your living be willing to take action when others won't none of us were made for easy being alive and tells more than mere existence you must choose not to relinquish your power to misperceptions fears painful situations or people nothing can get in your way prevent you from reaching your goal without your mission the human existence is paradoxically so frail and yet so powerful hooking into that power is what allows us to turn struggles into triumph bring visions into existence and dreams into reality by breathing new life into dying hold the hope that sees the invisible feels the intangible and believes the impossible this is your new beginning your time to get up and get on with your dream your vision from life because it belongs to you you