Medical doctor pens book
DR MONIFA Marshall, whose dreams of becoming a medical doctor were realised through the generosity of Gleaner readers, is now an author.
Her mother had died just before the start of the school year in 2014 and as she grieved, her hope of attending medical school hung in the balance due to a lack of finances.
Marshall’s story was published in The Gleaner and five years later, she graduated from The University of the West Indies, Mona, debt-free.
The 26-year-old recently published Timeless Treasures, a 365-day guided journal, with daily prompts.
She often had thoughts popping up in her head or nuggets of inspiration which she shared by mouth or posted on her WhatsApp status.
“I started writing them down in 2020, but I didn’t know that it was going to be a book. I was really documenting my thoughts on a daily basis. At the end of the year, I basically had a book – a thought for each day,” Marshall, a doctor at Victoria Jubilee Hospital, recalled. Through the pages of Timeless Treasures, Marshall hopes to echo and ultimately transfer her core values of honesty, loyalty and commitment to her fellow sojourners.
“It also has a section at the beginning for writing goals for the year. In six months, which is at the end of June, there is a section which forces you to go back and assess how well you have been working to achieve your goals. At the end of the journal, readers have the opportunity to assess themselves again, so it helps to keep you accountable,” she explained. The journal was published by O.Y.R Books and Publishing and is available at Fontana Pharmacy ( Waterloo), York Pharmacy, Shekinah Pharmacy in St Thomas, Ebenezer Pharmacy in Portmore, as well as on Amazon – paperback and kindle.
Marshall said what is unique about the journal is that it is not dated by a year, which gives readers the option to use it whenever they please.
“It is dated from January to December, but wherever you start, 365 days later, you can finish,” she said.
She added that the journal can be used alongside the reading of motivational books or to document important happenings in daily life.
Marshall hopes to pen a book in the future about her journey – loss, grief and becoming a medical doctor, among other things.
“I’m forever grateful to The Gleaner and its readers. When I do write that book, my desire is for it to be impactful,” she remarked.