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LUJ Alumna Kalima Sida Gambo Publishes Memoir
LUJ alumna Kalima Sida Gambo has published her first memoir, titled 13 Walking to 19: Lessons Learned on the Path to Adulthood. It's now available on Kindle and in Paperback.
Kalima has for years showed great promise as a writer, earning high marks in LUJ's Composition classes. Her Comp II research essay, "Do Working Students Perform Academically Better Than Non-Working Students," was considered a standout paper by her LUJ professor.
When Kalima became a Comp I tutor at LUJ's Learning Center, professors made sure to direct their students to her for some valuable feedback.
In Kalima's elegant and warmhearted memoir, she succeeds in sharing "the intimate memories that shaped who I am today."
“Being a teenager is like a rehearsal for adult life. You go through bumps and roadblocks, but there will always be people around to guide and correct you. Everyone around you has a different story to tell. Some experience love from parents, some from strangers. Some have the quietest teenage life, while others have the loudest life. We are all different and special. One mistake as a 16-year-old is not the end of your life. By the will and power of God, you have more years ahead of you to gain all the things you ever wished and hoped for. There is no need to rush because trust me, everything will make sense to you when the time comes. So dear teenagers, breathe. Breathe, relax, and enjoy every moment of your journey from 13 to 19. It is one of the most precious times of your life. It is the time you learn to discover yourself and prepare for the realer world ahead of you. Accept yourself as you are, correct what you think should be corrected, and appreciate each day. Honor your parents and reliable friends. Learn to love but start with yourself first.
To my fellow adults, I wonder if any of the things in this book felt relatable or nostalgic to you. Haven’t we all made it through? Weren’t there days when we weren’t sure if we could even see our 21st birthday? We were so caught up in being teenagers that we could barely think of our future. Well, aren’t we all here today? Have you reminded yourself how proud you are of yourself? Whether you are in your 20s, 30s, or 40s, I assume you’ve achieved most of the things you wanted to achieve when you were a teenager, from the smallest thing to the biggest thing. Your journey hasn’t ended yet, you know? You still have the chance to have the same hopes and aspirations for the future that you had when you were 16 or 18. Whether you’re a mother of three, a corporate baddie, a stay-at home wife, the CEO of a company, doing your master’s, or unemployed and looking for what to do with your life, the most important thing is that you are here, and you are moving forward at your own pace, like a moving train. So I say, breathe, breathe, and remember the same joy and spark you carried with you when you were a teenager. Yes, circumstances have changed, and maybe you weigh 100 pounds more or are 10 inches taller or shorter, but you were once him or her! Let’s recreate that story with our adulthood as well.
I am praying for the best for each and every one of you. May God make it easy for you, Ameen.”
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