I recognized the environment I was brought up in, and that being me was not a particularly desirable thing to be. I would constantly seek for much approval from my peers and my family. Even to this day, I am yet at liability for it. I crave recognition, and when I don't get it, I put myself into danger for just a crowd of laughter from redundant individuals who in the long run wouldn’t generate appreciable change towards my well being. I adopted the believe that I was not good enough due to past blunders and breakdowns, or commonly experienced an I vs everyone else confliction in my life.…
For me I felt taken back by this because growing up this was something I never had to worry about. Another way to see the socioeconomic difference was when it came to certain children having toys or clothing other kids didn’t have. Some of these children would make comments about how they couldn’t afford to have a phone or even a video game like the other kids at the club. Growing up I never felt this way, I always had everything I could have asked for and was constantly being spoiled by my family. The area where I volunteer had groups ranging from third to fifth grade and there were much more boys than girls.…
I disagree with changing yourself to fit in because we are all individuals and have the right of freedom and expression. Individualism the habit or principle of being independent and self-reliant. Tom Leopard tattooed his whole body with leopard spots and by doing that, he separated…
This constant rejection of my race and culture during my childhood has left me without a concrete identity and I feel, as Katy Perry once sang, like a plastic bag floating in the wind. School, where I spend most of my time, doesn’t help me with this either.…
Changing the Playing Field It’s go time. We take the field and get ready to throw down. Everyone is ready to give their best to the challenging task at hand.…
Every week, time after time, month after month, alone in silence with nothing but the view and envy that I had felt for that one hour, which time and presence wouldn't allow to go away. That freedom was what I wanted -being an outcast- not being forced into fake friendships because I had been conditioned from an early age by my peers to learn there is no such thing as a real friend. Mocking always filled my ears whenever I'd sit there during a Den Meeting; it was me, once again, subjecting myself to internal torment, bringing myself down. Occasionally, I'd be asked to get into a car, with them saying we were going somewhere “fun”. It never was.…
Thriving Through Adversity Growing up, as the oldest of three girls, I soon developed a sense of entitlement that, in the years to come, I would find did not suit me well. Fortified by the nurturing nature of my mother, I, being the strong willed, independent, and self righteous child I was, found that the ebb and flow needed in aiding the fresh wounds left by the separation of my parents was far less attainable than the easily reachable strategy, that I oftentimes fell back on, known as distancing myself from all that made me feel vulnerable. Not having a strong father figure in my life has helped to shape me not only as a student, a writer, a daughter, or a sister, but a person. Most would view this situation negatively but I choose to…
The last time I truly felt content in my life was when I was in elementary school, before the media implanted this idea of “perfection” in my mind, before I was seen as a geek, before the sole thing that mattered was the number of someone’s followers on Instagram, before I was objectified, before I hated myself. How did I not apprehend this before? Through all of these years, I solely wanted to fit in, but why? Why would I want to suffocate my personality" just to be another face in a sea of stereotypes and uniformity? The friendships I had cultivated and all the things I had done were done under the guise of self-hate, judgment, a prolific persona, a girl who so wrongly desired to be just another face among the faces.…
In my life there will always be obstacles; it is just a matter of when, how life altering they are, and the attitude I respond with. I faced my biggest obstacle, so far, the fall of my junior year. I tore my anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), and had to receive reconstruction surgery in October of 2016. During my therapy sessions following my surgery, when my therapist would give me a set of ten exercises to do ,and I would do fifteen. Each session wore me out to the point where my legs would be shaking and it was painful to walk up the stairs, but it was worth it to obtain my goals in the most efficient manner.…
A time in my life when I had to overcome adversity was when I was in the second, third, and fourth grade. Everybody used to say I look like a boy and I have a deep voice for a girl. I was used to get so mad and be so sad because deep down I knew it was true, but I did not want people talking about me. My classmates would whisper, look at me, and laugh I hated it so much.…
Being from the small town of Cheraw, South Carolina has given me many opportunities to interact with those in the community. Growing up around many of these individuals resulted in developing different relations. Relations in terms of natural association with others. As a result of developing relations with different individuals in my hometown, I began to notice the socioeconomic challenges among them. These challenges including, but not limited to: financial crisis, family issues, and/or economic dilemmas.…
Being myself is effortless over attempting to mimic others’ behaviors. When I am true to myself, I am not required to stress so much about anyone contradicting or having negative opinions to say when I do not choose the same decisions as them. The pressure to look like everyone around and conform to society decreases as I learn my own self worth. Showing my own character by doing what I trust is correct, dressing the way I am comfortable in and by not letting people's opinion influence my decisions , has permitted me to grow as a person. For example, I participate in activities that I enjoy and take classes that I find accommodating, to allow myself to stay true to myself.…
Ever since I was little I always wondered why I was never good enough for anything. I felt like I was not good enough for my family, and I still believe this to this day. My family treats me so different than they do to anyone else. I know I was never good enough in school because no one ever wanted me in their class. I strived for straight “A”s and sometimes that just was not enough.…
You are aware that you are different and you enjoy it, you focus on using your strengths and overcoming weaknesses but also go without unconfiguring your individual essence. Being yourself is the hallmark or individual identity: Just as all people have the right to a name and a number of single card, there is also a hallmark of your personality. You have to make an effort to find yourself. You were born in a particular household…
The year 2015 was one of the hardest years of my life, the reason being is because my bestfriend decided to commit suicide and no could believe it from the type of person he was. No one in my town could believe what he had did, not only that but because I was so close to him it was a huge step in the wrong direction for which I was headed. It took months upon months for me to get back to somewhat normal, I had to overcome what he had did and learn from what he had did. It was one of the worst decisions that he has ever made so I will have to take from his mistakes and learn to not do them, or else it could cost me my life as well. With my bestfriend doing what he did I had to take big steps back in the right direction.…