Ruth Mapazu
25
Blogger, Lets get real with Ruth
Zimbabwe/India
I was born in a family of seven with four siblings. Having sisters like mine has really been a blessing in my life. We call ourselves the “Golden Girls” my sisters have really been the most powerful impact in my life. I am what I am today because of them. I was born in Harare Budiriro. Growing up in such a location you feel like life opportunities are very limited for people like me and many others. I always used to say to myself that I was going to be a singer one day because I developed great interest in singing at a very young age.All I wanted was to be a public figure and I feel like that dream is slowly becoming reality. My family has always been supportive of my dreams from primary school till now. And I consider myself very lucky to have had such a strong support system.
I went to Budiriro 3 Primary School and since I was staying in the area it was not really a problem I could walk with my sisters and friends to and from School. My grades were always impressive because I have always been a hard worker.
I really enjoyed my High School which I did at Ngezi High School in Mhondoro, these were the best of times and years for me because I had the best of friends who encouraged and uplifted me to be a better person. I was known for bringing public speaking competition awards to the school this made me the most well-known kid at the School. At 17 years I won the National position on Junior Advocate story writing competition this was the biggest highlight of my life getting this award when I was so young I was very happy and this achievement really played a major role in building my self confidence.
After my A level I got a Scholarship to go study Law in India I obtained this Scholarship after I inspired a Member of Parliament who was inspired when I delivered a speech at a school function. I was really happy; however the Scholarship did not cover all expenses. It does not cover everything so this has been a strain on my family because they had to pay the remaining expenses. Being in the Diaspora has been so challenging for me but I have pulled through. I am currently a final year law student I appreciate everything my parents has done and taught me so far. I never thought a career in Law can also be possible by a woman especially in the side of my world.
In 2019 I hosted my very first Talk Show “Let’s Get Real with Ruth” at Chancery Hotel in India. We discussed issues on relationship, friendship and health issues and business after many years of gathering information. I had the idea when I was on School holidays I just thought of starting a Talk Show and I worked very hard to achieve this I have always felt comfortable speaking in public and this talk show has provided a platform for me to do so. Starting a program was not easy at all I encountered so many challenges along the way getting people to be interested and follow my show was so difficult but I worked very hard at convincing them. I also had to deal with a lot of expenses so the admission ticket was so costly but I had a lot of guests who were present on my first episode and it was successful. I was so happy and will forever be grateful to my Dad for supporting and sponsoring my show. I knew my family would always be supportive of my dreams.
Getting the opportunity to work as the Academic Secretary in the organization FISA-international students in India has really played a major role in my life. I have taught myself to work very hard in life to achieve everything I want in life.
I have had a few challenges in my entrepreneurial journey recently I had to close down my fashion shade business. I was shipping a few products from India to Zimbabwe but I was forced to shut down because of the high rate of inflation in Zimbabwe, but that didn’t stop me from doing business I decided to come at it even stronger I have been very busy trying to work out a way to improve it for the better I have started online platforms to give people access to online shopping of my products.
Trying to make a way to the public platform is not easy because you cannot afford to make any mistakes but what are we without mistakes. Because being a public figure is something I have always wanted for myself I have a YouTube channel with quite a great following, being a vlogger has been one of the most difficult yet most interesting journey of my life
With college taking up most of my time I always make sure I make time for my extracurricular activities. My dream and aspiration in life has always been to be a public figure and I still dream to be one, each and every day I keep telling myself it is not enough I need to do more and I believe I will get there.