Notable

It might be a strange blessing, but I felt so uplifted when I watched the story of Ben Carson. He was was raised by a single mom in Detroit, and became the leading Pediatric Neurosurgeon at Johns Hopkins. If you ever have the chance to read his autobiography (or watch the film as I did) it'd be well worth the time.

What first impressed was his mother. Ben was not getting good grades in school and one day, she had enough. Sonja Carson came in from a long day at work (she sometimes carried 3 jobs to support the family) and seeing her two boys crashed on the couch watching television put her right over the edge. She flipped off the television and told them both to get to the library.

In that inspired act of motherhood, she decided that they would read two books a week and hand in written reports before they could play outside or turn on the TV. Amazingly enough, she couldn't read what they had written, but it changed both of her sons' lives. Ben's older brother grew up to be an engineer, and Ben saved the lives of hundreds of children.

I think what was also great about the movie, was it showed the importance of Ben's faith. They depicted him (and I hope the movie was right) saying, "Thy will be done" before heading into one of his first major Pediatric brain surgeries. He knew that everything done on the brain was a miracle, and although not all his patients survived their operation, he has made great strides in his field. Thanks be to God, He can use anyone and from any walk of life- if we are willing to put in the work.