A Path for Me

As a young girl growing up, I have seen and been through a lot of things. I have met a lot of different characters and have been to a lot of different places. Going through all of these different changes I knew one thing was for certain, my big sister was always there with me, and it was Tiffany and Timeka against the world.

It all started when I was about one maybe one and a half, my grandma (which was actually my great-aunt) got custody of me and my big sister since my mother couldn’t care for us. My grandma’s name was Bernadine; she moved me and my sister from a raggedy apartment on the south side of Chicago to a beautiful 3 bedroom 2 bathroom house in the southern suburb Calumet City. We had two cousins that we were very close to named Shannyn and Shaina. They are older than us by a few years, but we played together as if we were the same age. Bernadine was actually their grandmother, but since she raised me and my sister we called her grandma too.

As the years went by my grandmother fell sick; she had breast cancer. She was doing really well with staying healthy for a while, but when me and my sister turned about 8 and 10 she fell sick again apparently she was on the wrong chemotherapy. My grandma was so sick she could not walk and she lost strength in her arms to, she was no longer able to care for herself. At the age of 11, I took on the responsibility of caring for her. I loved her more than anything in the world and I would do whatever she asked of me.

I would wake up in the morning, get dressed, and off to school I went. As soon as the bell rang at 2:25 pm, I would rush to my locker to gather my belongings and would rush home (also so I wouldn’t get caught up in the after school madness with the other kids) to be with my grandma. After about two years of that, my grandmother’s daughter (her name’s Demetra), felt as if caring for my grandmother was too much responsibility for me and my sister, so she allowed us all to move into her house where my grandma would have more help. So now we’ve moved from Calumet City to Glenwood and I was in the 6^th grade. I didn’t want to move. I don’t really like change, but I had to I transferred from Dirksen Middle School to Brookwood Middle School. All the kids there were different from me, I noticed instantly they dressed different; they talked different; they were very polite. I instantly felt as if I wasn’t going to fit in. I stayed there and finished out my 6^th grade year and over time I met new people and actually made some friends.

However, we moved again. This time it was to the next city over called Chicago Heights. I had to transfer again, but this time it was my 7^th grade year. I now went to Parker Junior High. Just like at Brookwood it took me a while to adjust. Eventually, I did and actually even liked it there. By this time I was about 12 and me, my sister, and my cousin Shannyn have come up with a plan to have shifts to help out our grandma. We did days, so Shannyn would be Monday, me Tuesday, and my sister Timeka Wednesday and we repeated through the week. So one Wednesday it was my sister’s shift to care for my grandma and since I didn’t have to I decided to go out to the park down the street with a few friends from school. So, we’re playing as usual and having a good time and we hear a horn honk. Everyone turned to look to see who it was and it was my sister. She had took the keys to my cousin Demetras truck and came up to the park. As kids we weren’t aware what was wrong with that situation, we were just so excited to hop in. As we all hoped in my sister decided she wanted to press the gas and make a left turn over the curb going into the parking lot.  That’s when everything went sideways. We flipped! Everyone crawled out of the broken windows; nobody was seriously hurt, thank god! But that’s when we had come back to the reality of the situation. I was scared of what was going to happen to my sister and myself because everything she did, people always assumed I knew because we were close but that was not always the case. I ran home crying to tell them what had happened and they all rushed down to park to see. Demetra was mad and Shaina wanted to fight. My sister went to the hospital, then afterward to jail for grand theft auto, since she was only 15 my aunt Kenya was able to bail her out so she only stayed there a few hours for processing, but it took all night to get released. I was sad I hadn’t seen my big sister in a whole 24 hours. By the time she got out the next day, I had already been moved to the west side of Chicago with my aunt Kenya, yes they put me out for what my sister did. My aunt went and got my sister and we stayed with her a while.

When my sister finally got to me, I was so happy that I started to cry because I hadn’t seen her since the accident and now I knew she was ok. At this point, I was half way through my 8^th grade year when I transferred to McNair. It was cool, but these kids were way different, they were mean. I wasn’t use to it but I had to adjust. Once I fully adjusted and made friends my sister caused mischief with my aunt and she put us out. We weren’t so upset she did though we didn’t really like the area anyway. So we moved in my great aunt Bernadine’s sister, my great aunt Murilene. At this point in my life I only have a few months left of 8^th grade I transferred back to Dirksen Middle School in Calumet City because that’s where we moved to when we left my aunt Kenya’s house out west, but by the time graduation had approached I wasn’t ready because I had learned three different curriculums, so I was behind a bit.

We stayed with my great aunt though it wasn’t until I was ready to be on my own that I left from with her. The process had greatly impacted my life though, because after all that I was never able to catch back up in school. I was always behind the rest of my peers that hints to the fact that today I am preparing myself for the GED. It held me back from school for a while I didn’t want to go back ever once I was through but I have to do what I have to do to be a better me today, and I can’t let my past determine my future I see better, and I will be better.

The lesson I learned is to follow the path for me. No matter how much I love my sister I can’t be willing to waste drop what’s important to me to always run behind her. I have also learned to speak up, if I see something is going to have a terrible ending I don’t wait around for it to happen. Since all of this happened I follow a new motto. If ever anyone asks me to do anything I’m uncomfortable with I ask myself first “would they do it for me?”

Lesson in Life

One important lesson I have learned that could help someone else is that education is the key to a good life.  I had a druggy mom and dad that did not go to school and so education was not important in my home. So when the people around you are not pushing you, it has to be on you to do it for yourself.  So it had to be on me to do it.

However, at 20 I had a baby and when the baby started school and I couldn’t help her with homework that made me feel bad. I needed to get some help for her. Because I could not read at that point, I realized how important it is to learn to read and went back to school. With so much going on in my life so that I could not keep going on every day the way I had been. I went to put in an application and had to ask someone to help me fill out the papers. The first time I asked someone to help I was so afraid that someone would find out my secret and talk about me.  

Don’t let the world around you come between you and your education. The big lesson I have learned in my life is education is the key having a good life.  Learning to read is the most important thing you can do for your life. Do not be afraid to ask someone for help if you need it. So, the best thing you can do is get your education. It is your life and you have to live it!

A Young Child Growing Up

As I was growing up there were eight of us in the house and my mother took care of us all by herself. I was the second child. When she took us to school, she stayed there the whole day volunteering in the school until it was time for us to get out.

When I was in second grade I stopped doing my school work, because I didn’t like going to school; so I would just sit there. I was not doing my class assignment work until my mother came to volunteer in my class. Then I would start doing it because I knew she was there. I learned when I was going to school that I didn’t know how to read or spell, so my mother used to have me to read books ever night for 30 min until I would understand what the words meant. I learned how to take my time.

            One thing I have learned is that I should have stayed in school when I was young, because I see that it was easier for me to learn when I was younger and my mom was there to help. When I was growing up I didn’t have to worry about my mother taking care of all eight of her children. She didn’t have to worry about finding a babysitter like I do now.  It’s going to be hard for people. You will have to pay more money for everything you want. Therefore, you should stay in school till you reach your goal. So that in the future you will have the things you need to live off of in life. So I will make it everything and the world to give my G.E.D. So once you start going to school, stick with it until you get your diploma or GED.

A Young Girl's Lesson

Annie, a little girl, the oldest of eleven children, lived in a house on Douglas and Homan in the city of Chicago with her family. She lived with her grandma, grandpa, mom, and her seven brothers, and four sisters. It was in a nice neighborhood with lots of churches and stores. The people in the neighborhood were very friendly. With her big family and nice neighbors, there was never a dull moment. As she began to get older going to school was getting harder, because Annie had to babysit her sisters and brothers. As time went by, her mom would get sick, and she had to tend to her sisters and brothers. She started to hang out with girls that were different than the way she was raised. They even dressed different than the way she did. Wanting to be accepted, by her peers, she started to hang out with them.

She felt like she was being too protected by her parents, so she left home and her mom was very angry! She looked to her friends as her second sisters and brothers then she started to like boys. She wanted to be accepted by her peers. That changed everything when she visited home to see her mama. There were lots of arguments. She turned to a boyfriend for comfort only to find out that he could not solve her problems. She ended up getting pregnant, first problem. Second problem was that she had to have baby’s pampers, milk and clothing. Her mother still needed help with Annie’s brothers and sisters. She still needed Annie’s help with dressing and feeding them, so Annie decided to go back home.

No matter what was going on, Annie’s mama said she understood that it was hard to go to school with helping her, but she that must still try to go. Her mother said that when she was a child her parents needed her to help by going to work in the field to pick cotton, so she did not have a chance to go to school. She wanted Annie to not to have a hard life like that, because she had to work in the fields, going to the white people’s houses to clean. Annie’s mother made her feel bad about having a baby so young. She said she needed Annie’s help sometimes, but never intended for her to stop going to school. By not listening, Annie found herself working, taking care of two children, and a home. When she finally realized what she was saying the damage was done, but what she said was still true. Now Annie had a chance to talk to other young girls who are at home with their moms and want to finish school.

Finally, she wanted young people to know that there are many things that can get in the way when trying to go school, but don’t stop trying to get a career in some field to support you. Mama influenced Annie to keep trying even though many people have told her she should give up. She now has enrolled in a Garfield Learning Center.  Influenced by her mother, with the help of many good teachers has made her feel better about her life. The staff at Family Start Learning Center has helped her with my reading, writing, and math.

The Right Thing to do

My name is Sheketa and I attend school at 10 S. Kedzie. I am going to school to get my GED diploma. I live across the street from my school. I have two teachers there. One of my teachers, who teaches math, is named Mr. Nathan. My other teacher’s name is Ms. Rachael; she’s my reading teacher. I have great classmates. One of my classmate’s name is Mr. Grandberry. Mr. Grandberry and I had a little altercation while answering a question Ms. Rachael had asked the classroom. He lives here in Chicago and is a great student. Things kind of got off on the wrong foot with us that day.

                Ms. Rachael decided to ask us questions about the book, The Kite Runner, we were reading in class. I was anxious to answer before she could call on someone else. I wanted to be the first to answer the question, so I yelled out the answer to the question. She replied and said, “no I want Mr. Grandberry to give me the answer”. I got mad and got out my chair and walked out of the classroom while mumbling mean words.

                When I left out the classroom, I went to sit in the office. I needed to go calm down from how angry I was. Ms. Rachael came in 5 minutes later and sat next to me. She asked me if I wanted to talk about what had happened. I replied, “no, not really.” Then she said, “Maybe you need some time to yourself to be alone”; I agreed. When she walked out to go back to the classroom, I realized deep down I really did want to talk. I had seen that she had cared. After I had a talk with Ms. Gwen (the lady in the office who always sat at the front desk) I felt a little better. I had learned that it’s always good to talk to someone about a situation that is bothering you. It helps you feel better. So, the next day, I came to school feeling much better. I couldn’t wait to see my teacher to apologize to her for how I reacted. When I saw Ms. Rachael, I apologized to her in front of the whole class. She said thank you Sheketa that was nice. Also, later that afternoon, my classmate Mr. Grandberry apologized to me. He said “he apologizes if he made me angry and that he wasn’t trying to make me feel bad”. I told him “thank you Grandberry, it’s ok.”

The most important lesson that I have learned that could help someone else is to always talk about your problems. This would help others if they are in a situation like this, if they are having problems with someone and need to talk about what happened. This was an important lesson that I have learned that can really help someone else.

Update! New writing coming soon!

Hello Readers,

We have a new batch of student writing that will be published this week. Students have been working on personal narratives on the topic, "what is a lesson that you learned that could help someone else." The students have completed at least 3 drafts of these narratives! I hope you enjoy.