I’m happy with who I am today, just as everyone should be. But if I could change anything about myself, I’d want to have more motivation to do things. In the mornings before school I can barely get out of bed because I’m so tired and don’t want to go to school. I’m exceedingly intelligent but I don’t have any drive. I procrastinate on most of my work, and sometimes I just don’t want to do the work. Right now I’m rank 14 in my class but I could’ve been higher if I had any drive my freshman year. I don’t think about how my decisions now will impact me later and when I do, I don’t really care. I also don’t have much motivation to do things in sports activities. Last year I played volleyball and I never had that much playing time. Never being able…
Belonging is undeniably a significant and innate part of human nature, offering one senses of identity, security and affiliation. Peter Skrzynecki’s anthology of poems Immigrant Chronicle epitomises the struggles associated with migration, demonstrating that to belong requires an understanding and recognition of one’s identity. It is also essential to establish relationships with people and places, as shown by Jutta Malnic’s representation of anecdotes in Born Again. Although the duality of belonging encompasses the reverse, as a lack of identity, security and affinity leads to an ephemeral state of belonging,…
The narrative, The Driver’s Seat struck home for me because I just received my driver’s license this past May, 2015. I took time for me to actually drive and to become comfortable behind the wheel of a car. This piece of writing spoke to me and allowed me to review some of the identical thinking points that I went through while getting to the point of taking control of my dad’s car. The story effectively walked me through the trials of spirit and mental anguish that preceded me in taking hold of the vehicle with my dad as the co-pilot giving directions. This was the exact thing the driving instructor in The Driver’s Seat‘ taught the author. The routine of how to maneuver and throw caution to the wind- taking risks- to get the author over…
Not belonging can be hard to deal with especially when you are somewhere or with someone that you are not used to. This can have an affect on the individual’s understanding of themselves and their world. In the poem ‘Migrant Hostel’ by Peter Skrzynecki, the individual hasn’t seen the world or felt a sense of connection because of where he lives. ‘Migrant Hostel’ is about Peter living in the hostel right after he has moved from Germany to Australia. At the beginning of the poem, the tone is solemn which allows the reader see his sense of not belonging to the hostel. The collective “newcomers” coming and living in the hostel highlights the fact that Peter lacks individual identity. In the third stanza, the “weather” is used as a metaphor for the unpredictability each day had in stall for the migrants. This means that they had no control over their lives and therefore can’t gain a sense of belonging. In the final stanza, the “barrier at the main gate” is used as a physical symbol which prevents Peter and the migrants from seeing the outside world and alienates them from the rest of the world. This prevents Peter and the other migrants from gaining a sense of belonging. This poem shows that an individual can sometimes not broaden and deepen their own understanding of themselves and of their world.…
I used to love reading. In kinder and first, my nose was stuck in a Magic Tree House book. Third, fourth, and fifth grade I basically lived at Hogwarts (in my rightfully sorted house, of course, I am a proud Hufflepuff). And in middle school, I discovered THE tween series of my generation, Maximum Ride. Reading was exciting, and even though I had done it for years every time I picked up a book it felt so novel. I was your ordinary bookworm until seventh grade when the joint power of Ms. Green’s teaching and James Patterson’s writing broke my will to read.…
People have different experiences of belonging, some of these are positive and others are negative. This concept will be explored through the prescribed text, the poems Immigrant Chronicle by Peter Skrzynecki, the film Looking for Alibrandi directed by Kate Woods and the novel Ten things I hate about me written by Randa Abdel El Fattah. These texts highlight the different aspects of belonging in varied negative and positive ways.…
Here I am in honor classes, but why I’m not smart enough to be here. This is going to be too difficult for me. All I see when I look around are all these outstandingly intelligent people. The only reason I am here is because Mrs. Lee’s class was straightforward or maybe the other people in that class were not very bright. Whatever the reason, I am here and already homework on the first day of school, the other kids probably don’t have homework. I really don’t want to be here, I want to be the smart one again. I feel strange and uncomfortable when I have to speak out loud like if the people around me are judging me.…
My mother, “Regina Hopkins,” has been a positive influence in my life. She has raised 6 kids all by herself as well as earned a Bachelor’s degree in nursing from a City College in Gainesville, Florida. My mother has been through pretty much everything a person can go through outside of war and was still able to be there and provide for all 6 of her kids. In high school, my mother wanted to play football and couldn't because she was a girl and back-in-the-day women were not allowed to play football with the guys. However, she remained strong by raising 6 kids and independently took care of all of us on her own. My mother has several qualities that I would love to develop. The first quality she has is balance; she certainly knows how to make…
Moving on is easy but what you leave behind is what makes it hard. Once you get to a certain age in your life you know you have to move on sometime. I know times are hard but you have to push yourself toward what you really want in life even if it means moving away from what you love.…
In sixth grade, I stood before a podium that stared back at my English class. This was not how I envisioned sharing my love for reading and writing; however, it was required. My palms felt sticky, and I just knew that the entire class could see my heart as it was about to hop from the walls that kept it safe. I prayed that I would not forget the lines as I recited The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost. In sixth grade, reading, writing, and I started a relationship. Today, we have yet to break up.…
Ever since I was born, I was a military brat. Not knowing where to call home, or if any place could be home, I moved. I moved six times, four of those places were towns that nobody could think about. Germany, North Carolina, Alaska, North Carolina, Germany, and Alaska, yet no place to call home. May 22, 1999, my first day on this world; Kronach hospital had its first American baby in their hands, yet they acted like I was a different species. The only event I remember was when I was about one. While I was one, I grabbed everything in my reach, even a grill handle. As a baby, I did not know that the handle was moving, the grill top had smashed my thumb. Ever since that event, I now have a starfish mark on the side of my right thumb from where the stiches were.…
Traveling into the Indian Territory, we were being angrily chased down by three Indians furiously shouting at us. Dashing through the thick forest, the savage Indians were throwing spears and shooting arrows that narrowly missed us. Although neither Gideon nor I was mortally injured, I did suffer from a nick from an arrow piercing near my ear. Thankfully, a group of burly fur traders approached from the side, which frightened the Indians to run away. Acknowledging that Gideon and I were inexperienced travelers in the west, they offered us protection in exchange for some valuable possessions. As a consequence, knowing that they were our best alternative for survival, we gave them our antique gold pocket watches and assumed the identities of novice fur traders. From that point on, we followed them through the west and adopted their skills for efficiently hunting animals and keeping warm in the harsh, cold weather. During one of our rest points, we approached a large Cherokee settlement located in Park Hill in which our group leader was friends with the Cherokee leader John Ross.…
Football has always been a big part of my life. As a young boy I would day dream of making insane touchdowns, making tackles that would leave man stuck in the ground, and even winning the heisman trophy. In 7th grade I had begged my mother endlessly to sign me up for pee wee football because she would always worry about the risks of football. After finally getting her to sign me up, we went straight into the season. I chose to play running back because as a 12-year-old I was remarkably fast having timed 5.3 in the 40 yard-dash. After a few weeks in the season we approached the playoffs and found out our opponent for the first round of the playoffs were the jaguars who were undefeated. Our team didn’t have the best chemistry on…
As Hannah knows, I had to take my car in for some unexpected repairs today so am a little short on money at the moment.…
Most teenagers do not have a clue about what they want to be when they grow up. Most young adults also do not know where their path is in life. Even some full-blown adults are still trying to figure out their purpose. I was lucky. I knew exactly where I belonged from about the time I was seven up until now, at the decently young age of nineteen. I do not see my path changing anytime soon; in fact, I know it will never change. But, I did not just wake up one day as a child and know what my path was, while that would be impressive. Defining moments in one’s life defines who they are. There were lots of things I experienced in my life that made me realize my purpose, my absolute passion. I had four of these defining moments in my short span of…