Personal Narrative: A Hard Life

A hard life has a way of growing you up;sometimes sooner than you think you’re ready.When i was in 5th grade i was burdened with the news that my dad had fallen sick with a disease that doctors couldn’t identify let alone treat.Although i was constantly being pulled out of class to go to the hospital to see my dad ,i was blinded to the severity of his condition.Part of that was due to my mother who tried to keep life as normal as possible during his times at the hospital. However her efforts were often in vain as we were slapped with cold hard reality.As time went on, my dad’s condition worsened to the point that the doctors told us to begin making funeral arrangements because “he’s not going to make it.’’ Throughout the course of my 6th grade year we focused on him getting better and most of our energy went to making sure that he had his medicine which sometimes ran upwards of $500.
The financial burden weighed heavy on us there were times where we couldn’t afford food because his medicine was too expensive.Going into my 7th grade year, my father had began to make a comeback from the still unidentified illness and life was beginning to stabilize.My mother had found a job working as a CNA my father is permanently disabled by his illness but was steadily improving and life was as normal as we could make it.That is until 9th grade.As my mother was working a 12 hour shift she injured her ankle resulting in her acquiring a bone bruise that the doctors tried to heal with a Subtalar joint infusion .There was a complication that resulted in her being diagnosed with CRPS (the most painful disease in the world in which there is no
cure.) The diagnosis devastated our family.Waking up in the middle of the night to her painful screams ,followed by the faint sound of crying was an everyday occurrence that made my freshman year extremely stressful. I was faced with the task trying to balance school and comfort my mom in which i was not mentally or emotionally equipped to handle.As a result my grades slipped .I went from an A and B student to having C’s and N’s .By the end of my 9th grade year school was the farthest thing from my mind in terms of importance .With both parents permanently disabled , i assumed the roles of adult,child,and caregiver.For a while my dad helped with taking care of my mother until he developed an infection in his foot that almost cost him his life .On his way to the hospital he told me “ Janay,if something happens to daddy i don’t want you stopping your life for me.Your mother and i will be o.k but you have to start doing better in school because you’re going to look back a realize you ruined your life.You’re a smart girl and i want you to go to college regardless if i pass or not”. Around this time i realized that in order for my parents to have a better life i had to provide that for them ;and from that day i vowed to do my very best to make them proud of me when i walk across the stage at graduation.So when my tenth grade year started i hit the ground running with AP and honors classes although first semester was difficult i perservered through it and by second semester my grades were stedily improving .Now,as an 11th grader i have AP,honors as well as community college courses in which i am obtaining at least a B in..