Literary Narrative

James Turnage

Mr. Keith Boran

Writing 101

25 September 2013

A Journey of Discovery Through A Quote

During my senior year, I had to find a quote that would best describe me. A quote that would define me as an unique individual and not make me fit in with my other classmates. Something that would really stress the importance of a specific struggle in my life and one quote that stood out to me was ‘’If you were absent during my struggle, do not expect to present during my success.” This was said by African-American actor and comedian Will Smith in the movie The Pursuit of Happiness. What makes this quite significant to my life? How did it affect my life? These are the questions I ask myself.

This quote signifies that those who were not apart of my academic journey should not expect to be there when I reach the point where I am trying to get. This quote really opened my mind about a lot of things simply because of the fact that the ones that really cared about what I was doing in school should have the privilege to celebrate with me when I graduated from high school. The effectiveness of this quote made my perspective of life have more meaningful to people who care about me and those who really are just there to try and hinder me from reaching or achieving my dreams. In reality, it made me realize that some people can be really inconsiderate about their children’s academic career and need to be more involved in their life.

As I was looking for a quote, I was thinking to myself, “what best fits a situation that happened in my life?” and it clicked, I recalled of one of my immediate family members that walked out on me during a time where I needed them the most. I asked myself sometimes “what did I do to make them leave me like that?” I had a sense of hurt and doubt in myself for a long period of time and I never understood why someone would just leave their child in the dark like that. I really had a hard time of trying to find a quote but as I thought of a hard time in my life it hit me. As I realized how important this was, I came across the perfect quote that would best fit this situation and that would clear the storm of this dark turbulent time. It gave me a sense of relief to know that any type of quote can best fit someone’s hard time in life and that I could relate to someone who is a big name in the movie industry.

One time in my life, I was having a hard time getting involved with extracurricular activities, focusing on schoolwork, and being social with my peers. I did not have a father figure that was there to help me understand that it was okay to be shy and that we are all humans with different emotions. I sometimes would look at the other children with their dads and how they were learning different things from them and being fathered like they were meant to be. I would sometimes keep quiet or cry when some of the children would tease me when I did not have father in my home. The things they would say haunted me for days. As I got older, I began to be more aware on my situation and I would not let the little things bother me. I never knew that being without a father would be so hard, but a learning experience at the same time. As my life went on I began to learn more about it. When I entered high school, I was apart of the Beta Club and became vice president. I was so proud of how I worked in school and that my grades were showing the effort that I put into my work even without the help of my father. Just as I began to praise myself, something very unexpected happened. A certain someone came into my life unannounced and it was something that I really was not expecting.

My mind was boggled and my emotions were scrambled. Was I suppose to feel happy, upset, confused, or just straight up frustrated? I felt all these emotions except the most important one, happiness. I could not believe that after all these times that I was in a sense of depression and pain someone would show up and try to play the “hero” role. How could someone not want to be around their child and not want to be there to see their child succeed in school and in life itself? It took me a long time to forgive my biological father, but I also thought to myself this guy gave me life and it would be selfish of me to treat him wrong. He did me wrong but at the same time I decided to just use the fact that he gave me life gave me a reason to do something with my life and not just become a person who had no morals or goals for themselves. On graduation day, I had the decency to acknowledge him in my speech. I felt that if I did not recognize him I would look like the bad person and it would clearly make him feel guilty for not being there for his oldest child.

This quote changed me in many ways. I grew from a child not knowing how to be loved by a father to learning how to live without a father figure and doing excellent socially and academically. This change can be important because no one wants to feel lonely or to live without a purpose. Now I see that life can take you anywhere you want it to. This was a very significant part of my life and it changed me in a way that I did not think it would take me. It made me become a person of integrity and determination which made me realize that you can make it without anyone and that you came in this world alone and you can make it in this world with confidence and positivity.

All in all, literacy is very important to our lives in many different ways. I highly recommend that people who do not like to read or write take it in consideration because it can make your life turn in a whole different way and your perspective can be broadened. I needed to be more patient and open to things that happened in my life because I never knew the outcome of the situation and in the end I became the bigger person in the situation. I really give my gratitude to Will Smith for his wise words that gave me the opportunity to become a very strong willed, confident young man.