The internet was abuzz two weeks ago when the DIY lady tied the knot with her heartthrob. Now, if you’ve never heard of her, you’re about to be blown away.
Popularly known as The DIY Lady, Lizzy Oke, fashion blogger and motivational speaker is a bubbly young lady who had an accident in 2008 where her car flipped over 4 times. It happened as she was making her way from Texas to Oklahoma after the school semester had ended. The accident affected her spinal cord and she became confined to a wheelchair. As you can imagine, Lizzy faced a major challenge and practically learnt to do many things all over again.
She spent time in rehab and re-learnt even the most basic of functions such as brushing her teeth, combing her hair and eating. She had to adjust to life as a paraplegic. The adjustments she had to make were many – not many apartments had wheelchair accessibility so looking for a place to stay took some time. She is also a naturally spontaneous person, but being on a wheelchair means that many events have to be well calculated in advance.
But despite all these challenges, Lizzy still expresses herself and serves as an inspiration to many with her blogging and fashion sense. She believes in making the most of every moment and in treasuring the people God has put around you.
With her experience, she now advocates for wheelchair accessibility for public buildings in Nigeria. She found that during a trip to Nigeria, it was difficult to get around because most buildings had many flights of stairs and no elevators, making no provision for those on wheelchairs. She also found that she couldn’t even reach the ATM because it wasn’t low enough for those on wheelchairs!
Liz’s now husband, Amen, who had been ‘friend-zoned’ prior to the accident, kept telling her that he wanted to be with her. Lizzy was more reluctant seeing that she was going through a major life change. But Amen was persistent; he had seen beyond the physical challenges and wanted Liz as a life partner.
Now, Lizzy stand as an inspiration today because she didn’t allow her circumstances place a lid on her dreams, joys or hopes.
You also have to realise that you can push beyond the limitations that surround you. There’ll never be a perfect season in life. You will find yourself faced with challenges at different phases. Everyone has challenges but those who stand out from the crowd keep pushing despite it all. No matter what you are facing, let Liz’s story of courage, persistence and hope inspire you to keep pushing .
Keep pushing guys!
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