From SGI USA, I'm Cassidy Bradford and this is bootability, the weekly series where I talk with Buddhists from all walks of life about the power we each have to change our lives and the world around us.

Each and every one of us is already enlightened.

But that can be difficult to believe when we had problems.

The idea that everyone is a Buddha is nice, and we might agree intellectually,

to actually believe it is another thing.

Dr. Victoria Smith of New Orleans had overcome so much through Buddhist practice, but still

struggled to see herself as a Buddha.

Today, she shares how she finally broke through.

All right, welcome to bootability, Victoria.

It's so good to finally get to see your face.

We have been trying to schedule and reschedule in this very busy month.

So thank you so much for taking your time. But I always have our guests introduce themselves.

So you can just share a little bit about who you are and maybe a little bit about like your origin story, your life growing up. Okay. so I'm Victoria Smith and I live in

Kenner Louisiana I'm a part of the Houdat nation I was born and raised in Roselle

New Jersey with the nuclear family of mom and dad and an older brother.

I went to college at Yale in New Haven, Connecticut.

And probably from the time I was 12, I set out on this journey.

One, I wanted to be a diplomat.

And so I studied lots of languages.

And I went to Yale actually to become, I was a Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations major because I was going to be a diplomat.

And then two, I was born and raised in a Black Southern Baptist Church in New Jersey.

And at a young age, had some questions and began a spiritual journey at age 12.

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