When I first immigrated to Israel in 1949, I had never had any formal education. The things I knew had been learned through experience or through the efforts of my family and myself.
Before arriving I taught myself some simple phrases in Hebrew. When I saw my brother-in-law waiting to meet us at the boat on the shores of Haifa, I called out to him, “I-yay Dita?” which meant, “Where is Dita?” I wanted to know where my sister was.
This got quite a surprising response from my brother-in-law, who laughed and laughed at my efforts. The style of Hebrew I had used was highfalutin, like speaking Shakespearean English, and he couldn’t stop himself from making fun of me. I was humiliated. I decided right then and there that I was going to learn the language fluently and never be embarrassed about the way I spoke Hebrew again. I was going to prove myself to him, quickly.
My parents sent me to an agricultural school for new immigrant girls called Ayanot in a small town southeast of Tel Aviv called Nes Ziona. I threw myself into the work with enthusiasm. I listened carefully to the Hebrew being spoken around me, read books, spoke Hebrew as often as possible, and memorized words from the Hebrew dictionary. While the other students went out socializing, I studied. My determination paid off. I spoke Hebrew fluently in 8 months.
Later, back in Tel Aviv, I started night school. It was unusual for young people to seek a high school education at that time. Work was valued, not education. But I wanted both. Money was scarce and I was ambitious so I took on two jobs in addition to my night school schedule. I worked on an assembly line nearly all day then moved on to a receptionist job at a music school for a couple of hours before attending classes each night.
I worked very hard, and after three years of working and studying, I earned my high school diploma. I was the only one of my friends who finished high school. Socializing was not important to me. Dating and chasing boys was not important to me. Achievement, focus, and proving that I was smart . . . that’s what motivated me then and it’s what motivates me still.
Anyone can achieve at the highest level in life. You just have to decide what is important to you; what gets you up and running every morning. Use that to drive all your actions, day in and day out, even when it is very difficult. Maybe you are like me and have something to prove. Maybe you have children and want things to be better for them than they were for you. Maybe you want to be the first in your family to accomplish a specific goal, like getting a degree or running your own business. Zero in on that one thing and resolve to use it, every day, to achieve your goals in life.
Dr. Erica Miller