There I was living a good life in Nashville, Tennessee. I was very comfortable in the current state that I was in. I was just a young boy during the summer before I would head into the 4th grade. Summer was going amazing with many memories. But then I got told the news that would change the life of me and my family forever.…
On a humid summer day in Chicago, my family and I decided to take a long journey to visit my distant family/friend in the Upper East Side of Chicago. Although, the car ride seemed peaceful and smooth, little did I know this was a journey to the most horrific town I’ve ever seen.…
I broke my arm today while getting on the freight train. Thank God I still have an arm unlike some of the other I have meet who have lost an arm or leg and some even know someone who has lost their life ( Riding the Rails). I have done this a couple of time now and I shouldn't have been so anxiety about it but I was. I hide under the track outside the yard like I normally do, waiting for the train to reach momentum so I could get on. I forgot to check for the bull guards who are hired to keep hoboes from jumping on freight. I guess I got too comfy with my environment( Riding the rails). Right when I was getting on the trains, I heard the bull guards yelling and chasing after me. It threw me off my balance and I nearly fell off the train. I…
Remember when we heard of the promises of this New World in Boston? Remember when you laughed right at seeing the poster? Do you remember when you called it “simply a big bunch of hogwash “? You may want to change your mind, as this is a truly wonderful place.…
I am from San Antonio, Texas and growing up in San Antonio was a great experience. I am proud to be from a big city with a small town feel with strong family values. San Antonio is a city rich in culture that her people love as much as Texas.…
It's hard to not know anything about me because I'm pretty much an open book. But if I had to think of something that most people wouldn't know about me it would be that I was born and raised in Hilo. All my life I lived in Hilo up until my freshman year when I moved to Kona. Right now I'm currently a senior attending Konawaena High School. With that being said, I lived on the Kona side for about 4 years now. The main reason for me moving to this side was because both my parents have jobs out here. My dad, being a manager had already been working out on this side as well as on the Hilo side. My mom on the other hand, got a job promotion that had to be taken in Kona.…
One of the most memorable moments I have experienced was four years ago, when I traveled from Matamoros, Tamaulipas to San Antonio, Texas. I had the opportunity of visiting San Antonio for the first time, and more importantly, of spending time with my family who I had not seen in years prior to the trip. Spending time with my family is of great value and importance to me, so I became utterly excited to see them as soon as I had the chance.…
I live in a small city called South Lake Tahoe in the state of California. The people in South Lake consider themselves locals as long as you have lived here for more than 10 years. However, locals consider our city a town. Our town is mainly a tourist town, skiers and snowboarders in the winter and campers in the summer. When somebody moves to South Lake Tahoe, it may only be for a few reasons; to be a ski bum, get out of the bay area, or family. The people that move here either make it or they do not because of financial reasons. It is very hard to make a decent living here. To say it short and simple, a person can move up here with money or they learn to live paycheck by paycheck.…
In my experience, I don’t think I am reluctant to a specific identity. Houston is a very diverse city that people can find almost any type of music genre. In my community there are Hispanic and African American families. The music that is heard is of all kinds from “R&B, Pop music, Reggae, to Cumbia, Bachata and Regional Mexicano.” I have lived in the same community ever since I was born and in my opinion, I have grown up listening to the different types of music genres. This has shaped my identity to be open to different music genres and traditions.…
My grandfather had always told me to if you don't pray 3 times a day your relationship with god will not be good.…
I was originally born in California. However, I moved to Salt Lake City, Utah when I was 8 years old. If I had to pick a place to call my hometown it would be in Utah. Growing up in Utah was a wonderful experience. I lived in a beautiful valley that laid between giant mountains that surrounded my town.…
It all started when we left from the hotel around five o’clock, hoping to get to the CN Tower on time. We were on vacation in Toronto in mid July, we had just arrived here a day ago from Niagara Falls. When we left we would have never imagined that this would be one of the longest walks some of us have taken. Pleasantly, we left for the CN Tower, which we thought couldn’t be a great amount of distance from our hotel. We were wrong!…
Las Vegas is exactly what I thought it would be in so many ways. I never thought a place could live so fully up to its famous and infamous reputation. From the slot machines to the nudity. Its almost like the entire place just never found its filter. "Southern Hospitality" was null and void and I'm guessing never even heard of let alone considered. Its just the complete rawness was something I'm not used to it at all. In the south everyone is so much more conservative and worried about what they look like in other people's eyes. It just seems like everyone there was so much more worried about themselves and their own lives they didn't have time to be worried with others. There was also this sense of togetherness and understanding. Not necessarily…
The day I found out I would be moving from Roseville to Alpena was probably the worst day of my life. I remember the day I found out about the move. Not only was I really upset because I would be moving away from my friends and family, but I was really scared. We were moving to the middle of nowhere, where I knew not a single person. I would be going into my 6th grade year in the fall, my first year of middle school. My brother and I did everything we could to try to sabotage the move, but sadly our plans failed. Nothing could stop this from happening. Everything I knew… was about to change.…
Imagine being stripped away from everything you knew: your childhood friends; cousins you thought you'd always have with you, and places you called your second, third, or even fourth home. That is exactly what I went through when my family decided to move to Albuquerque, New Mexico. What's different about my experience was that it wasn't necessarily the move that flipped my world upside down but everything that happened in between. I was an awkward, shy, midget-like twelve-year-old when my family and I lost our home during the California money crisis. From that point on it was like a tumbling circus act. My parents ended up losing their jobs until finally my dad moved to New Mexico; leaving me and my family for almost a year. The last thing…