Over the last 6 years I've been on a beautiful journey of transforming my life, but very few people know why. During the height of COVID during 2020 I got sick. At first I thought I was just run down, but it persisted then worsened. After getting labs done and a frantic phone call from my doctor a few days later (while I was at another doctor's appointment) I found out I was in severe organ failure and need to get to the ER quickly. I sat alone, in an eerily somber hospital, no visitors allowed because of COVID, contemplating my life after the doctors told me my kidneys were failing, and my heart was struggling. It's a truly bizarre moment to face your own mortality before your 35th birthday. After a few days my heart recovered, but my kidneys would not. My official diagnosis? I had late stage kidney failure, and would need a kidney transplant. If that wasn't overwhelming enough, the doctors all made it very clear, at my current health level I'd never get one. I'd like to tell you that in that room I was filled with nothing but courage and fire, but to be honest, I was terrified. Not so much terrified of dying, though that was a very real and frightening possibility. No, I was afraid of the life I felt I'd wasted, and the life I was yet to live. So that's what's I focused on. I focused on 1) Wanting kids 👨🏿‍🍼 2) Wanting to get married 💒 3) Wanting to make core memories 🥳 4) Wanting to pray more 🙏🏿 5) Wanting a career I was passionate about 👨🏿‍💼 6) Wanting to be healthy 💪🏿 7) Wanting to be better 🥇 8) Wanting to be the dreamer I always pictured in my head 🤯 I focused on wanting to live a life of love, joy, service and happiness. A few days and several prayers went by and I'm happy to say I did find my fight. I can't tell you what the moment or catalyst was, but I just refused to be done here with nothing to show for myself and without trying. Those next few years were filled with character defining moments. Having to conquer my fear of needles for monthly labs, numerous stays in the ER due to kidney infections, having to find a new doctor that understood the health challenges of my community. But the biggest one was learning that it's ok to let go of who you are to transform into who you need to be, and to set goals for who you want to become. So here I stand. Bruised and battle tested, but so much stronger, and so ready to live my new life!