MONTROSE, Ga. — As the writers of our destiny, we get to forge our own paths; 18-year-old Diontae Brazil writes his with determination and resilience.
After surviving a house fire when he was just 2-years-old, Brazil learned how to live life with a new normal.
"The story I was told about the fire was a Christmas tree fell over, and a rug or the carpet caught on fire," he said. "My brother got me out of the house."
His brother, Deltavious, was also only a toddler, only a year older than him. Their 10-month-old sister, Kaliyah, didn't survive.
Mary Brazil didn't know the siblings until her other children told her about a fire nearby.
"They said, 'Two little boys just got hurt in a fire! They got helicopters and everything, and they gotta airlift 'em to the hospital,'" Mary said. "I said, 'Well, that's two more that I have.' Now, I just said it, not knowing I was gonna get the kids."
Becoming family was their fate.
The boys were taken to the Joseph M. Still Burn Center in Augusta, Georgia. They were also treated at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta.
Mary said she was asked by family caseworkers to decide if she was willing and able to accept the kids after the accident. She says she did it without hesitation.
Mary has three sons of her own, three adopted daughters and, in 2011, Diontae and Deltavious became her adopted sons.
She asked her sister-in-law, Mary Thomas, to join her visit in Atlanta when meeting the boys. Thomas was the boys' Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA).
Coincidentally, she was also a firefighter in the area on the morning of the fire. Since then, she's also made sure Diontae Brazil got everything he needed at home as well.
Mary says his accomplishments wouldn't have been possible without his support system, which includes his family, friends, teachers, coaches and classmates.
Now, he's an honors graduate from West Laurens High.
"Always look at the bigger picture," Thomas said. "Things could have turned a whole lot different for him, but I think he had a good ending-- but it's not an ending because really he's just getting out of school, so it's testing waters."
During the summer, the West Lauren's High School graduate said he's going to get some rest and relaxation in. In the fall, Diontae Brazil plans to study at the Heart of Georgia Technical College and hopes to open his own gym one day.
"I could have did everything for him and not let him do anything for himself, but I always stepped away and let him figure it out," she said. "Now, if he needed help I was always there to help him, but give him room to grow."
His senior quote is "Never back down without a fight."