As a coffee addict who just moved to a new city, it wasn't long before I was searching high and low for all the best coffee shops in the Dallas area. I received a recommendation from one of my favorite food bloggers on Instagram (@a.cup.full). Go check her out! She's absolutely amazing! Anyways, I struck gold when she suggested this place to me. I had seen a few of my friends post about this coffee shop, but I didn’t think much of it. I thought it was just another cute instagrammable coffee shop. However, I was shocked to learn about the mission that La La Land Kind Cafe pursues.
La La Land Kind Cafe was founded with the purpose of mentoring foster youth and spreading kindness. This instagrammable and philanthropy forward cafe hires foster youth and teaches them various skills. These skills are important to provide them with the ability to understand business, life, and how to be successful. I would argue these are skills that they were unable to learn in foster care. Finally, a business that wasn’t solely based on making money, but more importantly focused on encouraging, growing, and educating foster youth. This business model hits close to home.
I didn’t grow up in the most safe home. My biological parents did what they could, but the environment was never healthy. I had many conversations with Child Protective Services where I was trained to lie about my true living conditions. I was scared of being in the foster care system. Drugs held a huge role in the unstable and unhealthy living situation that I was born and raised in. Both of my parents were in and out of jail and prison. I didn’t see a way out. I had aspirations (this term is very lightly used) of becoming a cashier. Even though I was an A/B student and in the top 10% (at my first high school), I never saw myself going to college. This sounds so silly typing out, because I had that level of academic achievement and I wanted to be a cashier. I liked doing good in school because my teachers would commend my work and it was nice to feel appreciated and important. However, good grades didn’t feel like enough to get me to and through college. I didn’t have the money. I didn’t have the resources. I didn’t have the knowledge. I understood nothing about college applications. I would be a first generation college student, if I even tried. I felt like there was no chance of going to college. I didn’t believe in myself and I didn’t have hope. La La Land Kind Cafe gives people hope. Hope is so strong. Hope positively changes lives.
I came very close to ending up in the foster care system. Thankfully, I was saved. I was saved by my aunt and uncle who graciously took me into their home before it was too late. Before I ended up in foster care, before I ended up doing drugs myself, before I ended up selling my body to make a living. I was saved before it was too late. I was given hope. I believed in myself. I graduated high school. I graduate from college in December. This was all possible because someone believed in me and exposed the hope that was buried deep inside of me. When I found that hope I was able to excel. I hope that one day I can influence someone's life as much as my aunt and uncle have influenced my life.
I want to finish this blog post on a positive note. There is beauty in the struggle. I have learned so much from childhood. I am more appreciative of the little things. I see all my blessings and am able to reflect on what my life could have been. I am who I am because of my past experiences. I feel comfortable sharing my story and opening up to others, because I want to inspire people. I want to change the world. Everyday is a new day and there is more than enough potential for positive change in your life.