By Allison Dukes
La’Ziyah Walker sat on the well-worn brown leather sofa, listening to her parents break the news of their divorce to her. She was then a 14-year-old high-school student with baby-blue braces that shone brightly when she smiled—but this wasn’t a day for smiling. Her mom had filed for a divorce, and her dad begrudgingly agreed.
Her parents approached Walker and her siblings in their comfy front room filled with family photos and the smell of an apple cinnamon candle floating in the air—and explained to them the circumstances behind their divorce. At the time she didn’t fully grasp why the divorce was still happening. “I only knew they were divorcing because of how much their differences had grown,” she says.
Walker continued to attend school and move on with her life beyond the divorce. Her mother, Lashundra Womack, encouraged her to focus solely on her schoolwork and not worry about the challenges surrounding the separation. “Your only job is to be a student,” her mother regularly told her. Walker’s parents made sure that the separation had as little as possible of an impact on her everyday life. Due to this, she is still achieving academic success and doing well in school.
Both of Walker’s parents continued to push her and inspire her to be the best version of herself. Recently, she was accepted into the Jackson Middle College program, a collaboration with Jackson State University that aims to combat the teacher shortage in Mississippi’s capital city. This program will make it possible for her to earn her bachelor’s in mathematics and receive free tuition for college.
Despite her parents’ divorce, Walker still has a strong bond with her dad and siblings.
She lives a very peaceful life now, having fun with her siblings and friends. She describes herself as “a people person who loves solitude.” She enjoys reading, crocheting and talking on the phone with her friends. Although she keeps to herself, she cherishes her tiny circle of friends.
A student at Callaway High School, this is Walker’s second year in the Youth Media Project. She is excited to be invited back to lend a helping hand to the new group. She believes coming back for her second year can “help me become even stronger in my writing. It really helped with my freshman year of college, and I’m excited about what I will learn that can help me in my sophomore year.”
Click here to read more about Allison Dukes, who wrote this piece about fellow Youth Media Project student journalist LaZiyah Walker.
