We are often told to leave our past behind when you wanna move forward. The process of healing doesn’t happen in the past, it happens in the “next”. But what if our greatest power lies in the things we refused to forget?
In her memoir, Echoes of Life, Rose Khalatyan proves that looking back is not a sign of weakness, it is an act of courage.
Rose’s story begins with a thirteen-year old girl landing in America, carrying the silence of the language she didn’t speak. It’s a common human struggle we never see on the front covers of immigrant stories, the loneliness of being an “outsider”. Yet, Rose overcame the struggles and turned her heritage into a heart beat.
Today she stands as an experienced entrepreneur, but writes with the humility of that young girl in Armenia she once was. She shows us that you don’t have to erase your accent or hide your history to succeed. Instead she used the “echoes” of her family, the smell of her grandmother’s kitchen and the resilience of her parents to build an empire.
Rose’s journey is controversial as it defies the typical “hustle” culture that the older generation shows. Instead, she suggests that we don’t work ourselves to the bone, but work with purpose.
For any high schooler sitting in a classroom feeling like they don’t fit into the mold, Rose is the perfect inspiration. She is proof that your roots aren’t shackles, they are the very things that make you, you.
Rose Khalatyan reminds all the young adults that the most beautiful thing you can be is a person who remembers where they came from.
