Neurosurgeon overcame seemingly impossible odds
A heritage and a hope
Peter Johnston

By 1990 this African-American had become a professor and director of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins medical institutions in Baltimore as well as an author of two books.

But his start would not have led one to anticipate such success.

Raised by a single mother after his father walked out on her, Ben Carson had a frustrating childhood. The departure of his father did not help. As he says in his autobiography, Gifted Hands, "For weeks I pounded my mother with every possible argument my mind could conceive, trying to find some way to get her to make Daddy come back home."

While beginning his life in Detroit, he, his mother and brother had moved to Boston by the time he was eight. Moving into a tenement he quickly learned of roaches, rats and snakes, including one snake that found its way into their basement. Two years later they returned to Detroit. As he entered a predominantly white school he found himself at the bottom of the class.

"Being at the bottom of the class hurt enough by itself, but the teasing and the taunting from the other kids made me feel worse."

But his mother demanded he memorize his times tables and restricted time before the television set and gradually Ben's grades began to improve. Nonetheless, when he began junior high school, he fell into much of the foolishness of his peers and again his grades dropped.

Besides his mother, Carson acknowledges several teachers for providing attention, encouragement and inspiration. In particular he named two male teachers for their parts in motivating him to persevere and to put first things first. Their encouragement paid off as Carson applied for acceptance and was not only accepted but received a scholarship to Yale University.

Carson openly acknowledges his shortcomings in this moving autobiography. This brief recap of highlights would be lacking if it failed to mention the faith in God that he came to hold and its sustaining power through overcoming a violent temper and the grace that carried him through challenging academic times both in high school and in college.

For instance, after having held the dream of becoming a doctor for many years his personal ambition almost died as he approached the end of the semester in chemistry. His semester grades would not enable him to pass unless he performed extraordinarily well on the fi- nal exam. But he had failed to consistently study through the semester. Knowing he needed that class to go on through course work to prepare for the medical profession, the night before the exam he called upon God for help.

He studied hard that night but knew that apart from God's grace he lacked the necessary knowledge to pass. During the night he had a dream - a dream so striking that upon awakening he wrote down its details including solutions to problems seen in the dream. Upon opening his chemistry exam later that morning, the questions included those in his dream the night before! His exam was a recap of his dream; he not only passed but scored toward

the top of his class!

Following that rescue, Carson promised to apply himself consistently from that time forward. His life and accomplishments bear witness to His recognition of God's grace and his need to work diligently. Ebony magazine summarizes his life in the following manner: "Love, faith, and hard work … overcome seemingly impossible odds."

Peter Johnston, an East Bernard resident, earned a history degree from Cornell University and is a former high school history teacher. He established WORD Dynamics in 2003.