Achieving dreams through books
I achieved my dream thanks to the books . . .
Linda in Cameroon is in the final year of her studies to become a Magistrate. Growing up in a rural area where most people are subsistence farmers, Linda has had to overcome many hurdles to get to where she is today and believes books played a large part.
Here Linda tells us more about her journey.
I come from a village in the rural area of Kumba called Ekombe. All the people there are farmers who grow mostly cocoa for export and subsistence crops like plantain, cassava, coco yam and vegetables for their own consumption and to sell. We had a cocoa farm. Like all children in my village, I attended the Government primary school where having access to textbooks was a luxury.
My father died when I was ten. Life became a nightmare – our mother was the sole breadwinner for a family of six. My oldest brother was unwell and could not do much to support our mother as expected so I was the one who ran errands, sold vegetables and other foodstuffs to make money the family needed to function. Then three years after my father’s death when I was in secondary school, my uncle contested the will and took the cocoa farm my father had left behind – the only asset we could rely on.
My aunt visited and seeing our situation, decided to take me to Yaounde to continue my education. A village girl integrating in a school in the city was not an easy task but I was able to make it through college and high school and went to university to study law.
It was in my third year at university that a friend helped me to register at the EISERVI library. It had valuable resources that greatly supported me through my projects and studies. It also provided all I needed to gain a Masters Degree with an excellent grade.
After that, I resolved I would go to the National School of Administration and Magistry to specialise in Magistry. My mother’s case and the treatment of property rights in my tribe has haunted me since my family lost the piece of land my father left after his death. I wanted to be a Magistrate to bring an end to some of these injustices.
The EISERVI library was my main reservoir of knowledge.
I read for long hours and went through almost all the law books I could lay my hands on. I was fully prepared and twice I passed the entrance exam but failed the interview. Friends tried to encourage me to move on to something else but I was resolute.
With new books and the friendly atmosphere at the EISERVI library, I grew more confident to face the exam and interview for a third time.
I passed the examination and also the interview. I achieved my dream thanks to the books at the EISERVI library. I thank EISERVI and partner Book Aid International for touching and changing lives for the better.