Importance Of Growing Up In My Family

Now throughout my life, being the oldest son, and brother I have always felt that I needed to set the example for the rest of my family. I’ve felt that I needed to be the pillar of strength to carry my family, my parents always made me believe that if I was strong then everyone else around me would benefit. Emotionally as a child I felt shut off from the world because I would be struck/scowled for crying, or even if I’d show the slightest bit of what my parent’s called “overconfidence”, which is basically any type of trying to feel good about my accomplishments in any form. But of course I was always expected to perform at the peak and be above everyone. For this type of upbringing I was “isolated” from the rest of my peers, emotionally detached, and felt as if I was an unwanted enigma. As it says in “Mirrorings” on page 729, “I felt that I was the only one walking about in the world who understood what was really important.”

Throughout life I’ve experienced a rather unpleasant childhood with the absence of my guiding figures: my parents. Seeing them rush in and out of the house to go to the hospital with my younger brother shaped me in a way nothing else could have. It made me who I am today, as well as aspired me towards what I want to be one day.

The weeks that followed were very difficult. My mother ended up changing her hours at work so she could visit my father in the hospital. On the weekends my mom would spend from Friday when she got home from work, to Sunday night in the hospital. I have an older brother and a younger brother; they are lazy most of the time, so the only help I got was from my grandmother. Unfortunately, my older brother wasn’t present for three weeks for certain reasons, which left my ten year old

In 2012 Zach Wahls, now author and civil rights advocate for the LGBTQ community, presented a speech to the Democratic National Convention. In his dialogue, he gave insight into his normal family and the lives of the people who raised him; his mothers Jackie and Terrie (Griffith, 2014). Wahls cited that his family was like any other normal American family that ate together, shared chores and enjoyed spending quality time together, and thus initiated a conversation about family normalcy (Griffith, 2014). What makes a family a family? There are few defining characteristics such as living together, caring for any dependents and maintaining a close intimate relationship however, as we progress and encounter various social changes these factors evolve and can vary from culture to culture. The U.S Census Bureau defines the family unit as “two or more people living together who are related by birth, marriage or adoption” (Lofquist et al., 2012). This definition fails to consider families who don’t fit this mold. As Wahls mentioned in his testimony, his family consists of himself and his loving parents however a Lesbian Civil Union is not encapsulated into the definition provided by the Census Bureau. All families carry out important functions that ensures the survival of society (Benokraitis, 2015). These roles include sexual activity, procreation and socialization, economic stability, emotional safeguards, and social class placement. With definitions that limit the family, it is

I grew up with a younger brother, Tom. A boy I was always jealous of. He had the opportunity to be normal, the chance to be human without any interruptions. He had the privilege of a good night’s sleep, a mother’s kiss and a good night story. He never felt the pain of bones burning or the feeling of failure when you realize you are not in control. He grew normally, without a poison in his veins.

No one can control what family they are born into nor what struggles are destined for them in the future. By the age of nine, my parents could no longer help me with my homework, rather they could only offer a few words of encouragement. The language barrier and cultural clash we experienced as a family put me at a disadvantage compared to other children my age.

Even as my older brothers were failing their classes and disrespecting my parents, I continued to set and achieve my goals while still being a pillar for my family. Even though I didn't have the same opportunities as my peers, I still enrolled and excelled at some of the hardest courses throughout middle school and high school. Even though we have introduced and gave home to two younger boys to our family and have shifted the balance once again, I still managed to maintain an aire of normalcy and maintain my grades. Even with three older siblings who have barely passed high school and one who didn’t finish at all, I am still going to be the first go to college and I do have lofty ambitions which I do plan to accomplish. Even though nobody could probably fathom or understand what I’ve been through, what I’ve seen, what I’ve felt, I am determined to not let that hinder me, and to make a future for myself without

As the oldest of three siblings, I have had to do many things for myself that my younger brother and sister had done for them. For example, I had to fend for myself in attempting to obtain a driver’s license even paying someone to teach me to drive and take me to the exam, while my siblings had help from my mother in all aspects of the process. Also, the loss of my father has resulted in conflicts with the remaining parent, my mother. These conflicts were the result of economic struggle and disagreements about how to spend the monetary benefits left from my father’s passing. The position in my family as first‐born combined with the conflicts in my family, have led to life‐changing decisions such where to live, and what careers to pursue.

As a child, I was quiet and withdrawn. I taught myself to read when I was three, and spent most of my time reading instead of playing with other children. I understood very early that I was different from others at school. I didn’t have to pay for lunch, something I found (and to be honest, still find) completely mortifying. My father was almost never home, always trucking all over the country in an effort to keep our family afloat. When other kids talked about their dads in school, I often found myself feeling jealous. I, too, wanted a dad who could teach me how to ride a bike or throw a ball. I also understood that it was impossible for me to have that, because my father worked around the clock to keep my family from going hungry. I realized that in order to achieve the things that I wanted to, i would have to take the initiative and do it myself. I borrowed my sister’s bike (although it was much too tall for me to use comfortably), and I practiced riding it until i knew i was better at it than any other 7 year

Due to my parents’ divorce, an unfortunate rift has been created in regards to my family life. However, bad things can always become good, and I have been able to turn this into a good thing. I have learned to care for myself, and at a young age, this is becoming rarer and rarer these days. I am able to cook, clean, do laundry, shop, and provide for myself. Many days have been spent by myself with a home to take care of, giving me many responsibilities that the average teenager would not need to worry about. This has prepared me for college life as well as beyond in the eventual real world I will find myself in. This fierce independence has shaped everything, from my personality to my daily life and

She told me I needed to be the man of the house despite the fact, I was the second oldest. My older brother continued to struggle and get in trouble as he wrestled with his own demons. I didn’t have the luxury of doing what I wanted. I dropped many extra-curricular activities so I could be home to help my siblings with homework and dinner. Even to the extent that my going away to college was simply to encourage them to do the same when they finished high school.

As, we settled in Palatine, without a father in my life, I basically became a father and a caregiver to my brother and sister. Many days and nights, my Mother, had to go out and run some errands, there would never be anyone to babysit my siblings especially since money is so tight. I would be the one watching them, many times it could be for hours and other times it could be all day. They would often have seizures, which I learned how to take care of and learned how to distribute the emergency medication. Often, I would have to come home from school or practice and help make dinner, clean the house, or help get my brother and sister ready for bed. After doing all of these chores to help my Mother out , and i would still be able to crank out my homework, and still manage to get great grades, because I knew the importance of them. This has always been a stressful situation in my life. My life has made me a better person, everything has matured me, and made me a better person. All of this is a part of my identity/background , it's made me who I am, and prepared me for the life. I'm not the normal football jock, this is my

As the eldest of three kids, I am who I am because of my younger sister and brother. Coming from an immigrant family, my parents worked full time at their restaurant. They had to care for the customers, the finances, kitchen supplies, and food; money was their priority because that money was for me and my siblings. From the first day I started kindergarten, I was extremely independent. Everyday after I got off the school bus at approximately 2:45 PM, I walk home and eat a bowl of cereal. I studied completed my homework, and on the occasional times my dad was home, I asked him to correct my answers. All that changed two years later when my younger sister started her kindergarten year.

My life growing up was not an easy one, When I was younger walked five blocks to go to kindergarten rain or shine, before that it was a one small bedroom apartment, and before that we lived with my aunt’s and uncle’s where everything we did was frowned upon. Then we moved to Whittier, where things got slightly easier and my first brother

When I was an adolescent, I considered myself to be a shy, introverted person. Growing up, I had always admired my father’s adaptability through obstacles, but it wasn’t until high school that I discovered I had similar qualities of my own. During my sophomore year, my father was brought into the hospital for having five Abdominal Hernias as well as Hypertension, he was immediately brought into surgery and remained at the hospital for weeks. Each day, I visited my father at the hospital for hours and took care of my father's work at home. I also maintained my performance and reputation at school, balancing my many rigorous courses, as well as my multifarious extracurricular activities.