If you\u2019d been through what Abigail Naraine has been through, it would be easy to close yourself off, to see the world as a dark place.<\/p>\n
After all, if your mother had been murdered when you were a child, no one would be surprised if you view others with fear and mistrust.<\/p>\n
But that\u2019s not Abigail Naraine.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo lose a parent at that age and in that way \u2013 I wouldn\u2019t want it for anybody,\u201d said Naraine, one of roughly 5,400 University of Central Florida students graduating this week. \u201cWhat happened to my mom taught me many things, but if anything it\u2019s that life is short. What\u2019s the point of being bitter and angry about it? I\u2019ve forgiven the guy who did it. I\u2019ve let go of the bitterness and anger.\u201d<\/p>\n
Naraine, 24, was an 8-year-old in the second grade when she and her sister were pulled out of class at Hiawassee Elementary School in Orlando.<\/p>\n
\u201cI remember thinking, \u2018Oh, we\u2019re getting out of school early for March break.\u2019 I was so excited,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd that\u2019s not why we were taken out of school.\u201d<\/p>\n
Naraine\u2019s mother, Lalita \u201cKay\u201d Naraine, 42, was manager of a Dollar City store in west Orlando. That morning in March 2000, a man had walked into the store, tied her up and cut her multiple times. She bled to death in the back of the store.<\/p>\n
A week later, a worker at a nearby Central Florida Fair was charged with her death in an apparent botched robbery attempt. He was convicted of first-degree murder and is serving a life sentence at Liberty Correctional Institution in Florida\u2019s Panhandle.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was 8 years old. I didn\u2019t understand why people would do that,\u201d she said. \u201cShe was the most beautiful person I knew. She was very giving. People would go into the store and kids wouldn\u2019t have the money to pay for something. She would just say, \u2018Take it and go.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
For Abigail and her two older sisters, it was an incredible loss. They still had their father. But they missed their mother the most at special events like the high school prom and her sisters\u2019 weddings.<\/p>\n
At the same time, Naraine knew her mother \u2013 who\u2019d worked two jobs to provide a better life for her daughters \u2013 would want her to be happy and successful.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that\u2019s where I find a lot of my success,\u201d she said. \u201cLike with my exams, when I don\u2019t want to study I say, \u2018If I\u2019m not doing it for me, I\u2019m doing it for her.\u2019 If I were negative, I\u2019d never be able to graduate in the top 10 percent or to make the grades that I do or to be a good sister or a good daughter or any of those things.\u201d<\/p>\n
When she was younger and worried about not having the guidance a mother would provide, Naraine began evaluating herself at the end of each day.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many hours did I spend going toward something positive like studying or making somebody\u2019s day better?\u201d she would ask herself. \u201cAt first, it was to make sure I was on track because I didn\u2019t have a mom to help me. Now it\u2019s a daily thing I feel like I need to do.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her relentlessly positive attitude and drive have helped Naraine excel at UCF, where she has majored in human resources management in the College of Business Administration and will graduate with cum laude honors on Saturday. Naraine\u2019s outlook in the face of adversity have inspired others, as well.<\/p>\n
\u201cAbby is the type of student who helps you become a better teacher,\u201d said Lonny Butcher, director of professional development in the College of Business Administration and Naraine\u2019s mentor. \u201cI owe her a lot. Interacting with Abby really changed the way I look at the loss of my own mother.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a way, Naraine\u2019s mother will be with her when she dons her cap and gown to accept her degree on Saturday.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt would be awesome if my mom would be at my graduation,\u201d she said. \u201cBut she\u2019s definitely in the back of my mind, pushing me to do better.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"If you\u2019d been through what Abigail Naraine has been through, it would be easy to close yourself off, to see the world as a dark place. After all, if your mother had been murdered when you were a child, no one would be surprised if you view others with fear and mistrust. But that\u2019s not Abigail Naraine. \u201cTo lose a…","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":75373,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"template-twocol.php","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"lazy_load_responsive_images_disabled":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":"","_wp_rev_ctl_limit":""},"categories":[31,5,27],"tags":[7309,1004],"tu_author":[],"class_list":["post-75372","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-college-of-business-administration","category-colleges","category-student-life","tag-college-of-business","tag-commencement"],"yoast_head":"\n