The First Graduate

We experienced a milestone among relatives this past week; my cousin Ahmad became the first of our extended relatives to complete a university education.  The achievement is a result of significant endurance, devotion, and support from him and many others who help make this possible.  Ahmad’s Bedouin community in the Bekaa Valley of Lebanon suffers from severely low rates of education that have contributed to a cycle of poverty.  I recently did an ethnographic study on his particular community and found that of the estimated 800 individuals in the area only five have completed a Grade 9 education.   You can imagine how few university graduates the community boasts.  As a young boy Ahmad showed the desire and potential to continue in his studies, and my father committed to support him in his academic pursuits.  It was a long journey that had many bumps in the road, but he maintained on course until finally arriving a graduate.  The accomplishment is more than one young man receiving the tools to build a better future; it is about a marginalized community producing an example of the value and possibility of education.  I’m proud of my cousin and privileged to have journeyed with him on this road through university.  Unfortunately I could not attend the graduation ceremony, but I know the achievement will require more than a onetime celebration.  It’s a lift to my spirits to hear Ahmad with such thankfulness and gratefulness of the many people who have helped him reach his dreams.  Success is rarely an individual thing, and many of us are feeling good about this milestone! 

My Cousin Ahmad and Aunt Hamda.  She never had the chance to learn to read and write but now she can at least say she's the mother of a university graduate.