Personal Narrative: A Career In High School

As a junior in Early College I would more or less consider this my second year, as I have been taking college classes for three years now. However, I can still identify an issue I am facing with my courses. As I am trying to graduate a five year program in only four years, I have taken on a lot of responsibility as a 16 year old. I am currently taking 6 courses this semester, and I will have to take five courses every other semester to graduate on time. As I thought this would be a busy course load for me, I ended up quitting my job because they could not comply with the hours I requested due to school. I completely regret this, as I now have to work at a job that I am not making much money at and I have even had to take on some side jobs just to be able to pay my insurance on time. Sometimes, people make decisions that they think will better them and make life easier, but they make these decisions without careful consideration and at least trying the circumstance before changing everything.

Although most people would continue post-secondary after high school, I plan on going to college, most likely Langara college, first after graduating. At first, I did want to go straight to UBC or SFU after high school, however, I started thinking of what I wanted to do. Then it occurred to me of how this is going to affect my entire life. From what I heard from others, people sometimes change their decisions based on what they want to do as a career. Not only does this take a lot of time on studying something else after changing their primary focus, but also costs a lot of money. Unfortunately, I know that I won’t have enough money to pay off the financial expenses just to study for the career I want for my future. I need to make sure that

“Soon shall thy arm, UNCONQUER'D STEAM! Afar; Drag the slow barge, or drive the rapid car;

I have always been a studious school-minded person. I went to school at Miles Exploratory Learning Center aka Miles ELC from preschool to 8th grade. I was very hard working receiving all A's and B's throughout my schooling. I then moved to Tucson Magnet High School. I was top 25 out of 600+ kids in my class and got to wear an honors cord and be called up in front of everyone. I graduated high school with a 3.8 GPA something I am very proud of. I worked very hard in high school to make sure I graduated with good grades because I needed all the scholarships I could get to be able to afford college since I am white and middle class and not very many scholarships are offered to middle class families.

I attended three different high schools as a teenager. I was a member of the JROTC program for four years. As devoted as I was I was on the unarmed drill team for two years at Roosevelt high school called the “ Riderettes “. My junior year of high school we actually made first place out of seventy schools in Kentucky, Louisville. Which means we qualified for Championship Daytona, Fl Nationals. It was a lifetime experience for me as a teenager. Who knew I would be going to Kentucky or Daytona for free with a team I can actually call my sisters. One of the most things I loved about my trip was the beach early in the morning with the sunrise out and all you could see was the beautiful blue waves washing over the shore.

I consider my Middle School career to be like climbing a mountain. You start the climb not knowing what to expect, not knowing what types of things you will run into. As the climb progresses, you become more accustomed to your terrain. Through experience, you learn which places to rely on, which rocks and ledges you know you can trust with your life. Throughout your climb, things can get a little rough. Sometimes, you may feel like giving up and climbing back downwards. Other times, you may feel like you have no ledges to help you climb the mountain. However, after the hard climb, the view is beautiful.

At first, I didn’t think I belonged here. I wasn’t doing as well as I had hoped at the beginning of the semester, but I buckled down, got tutors and used my time wisely. After just a week, my hard work started to pay off. I realized I loved being at Salve and I could not have chosen a better school to be at. The people here have been so welcoming and have been so helpful. I am so glad that Salve was the school I chose. Not only was it my dream school, but I also figured out who I was and why I belonged here rather than at any other school. I love Salve and I could not imagine being at any other school.

A challenge I have faced in my high school career was tearing ligaments in my knee. I tore my ACL at the beginning of my high school football campaign. I didn’t know if I was every going to be able to play the sport I have always dreamed of playing in high school again. This injury affected me in many different aspects of my life. In school, on the field, and my family.

They started teaching us in middle school that we don’t ever get it easy after this. When they said we didn’t get it easy, I thought that just meant the classes weren’t easy in high school or in college. No. They meant life is not easy after this, they meant it was time for us to put our big kid pants on and grow up. Beginning my high school career is when I finally realized that life is not just handed to me, that I have to work to get where I want to be.

Right after high school graduation, I had the opportunity to go to college on a wrestling scholarship. I had to declare a major when I signed up for classes, and I knew from the start what I thought I wanted to do. My favorite subject in school was math, and my two favorite teachers were math teachers, and one of them was also my wrestling coach. I thought he had the best job in the world, and I wanted to do the same thing. I want a career that focuses on something I know and like (math), that lets me be around young people (high school teaching), and that might let me also continue to be involved in wrestling (coaching part time). I also wanted a job that gave me a great schedule: 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., with weekends and summers off. My parents

I have always been a good student, always getting good grades and never really getting in trouble at school. My parents always told my brother and I that we are completely different in a lot of ways when I was younger. Now, I am 13 years old andIam just your average, awkward, introverted band kid you would expect. I am just sitting in my room on my bed with my desk right next to me, my closet right next to that, and my door at the end of my bed. Lately, my parents had been bugging my brother to turn things in and try a little harder in class because, apparently, he wasn’t doing so well. It was a cold winter evening; it was so cold it felt like -1000 degrees outside. Ihave a Michigan State sweatshirt on with my blue comforter over my criss-crossed

As a senior in high school there was many things I was excited about the top choices were graduating, and starting college. Fast forward past my graduation and to the first day of college I soon began to realize I made a mistake, I let others talk me into joining a school that was never for me. A school I just didn’t fit in or feel comfortable attending, I pushed through the classes often times feeling depressed, and on the verge of a break down, but I did not want to give up. I wanted to succeed, and the only way I could do that was by getting a degree, as time continued on I became more depressed making it feel impossible to get out of bed. The thought of waking up early leaving bed to catch a city bus to a school where I did not feel welcome became so overwhelming, but I still forced myself to get up and tried.

The future is often ignored by students, or at least when it comes to their own future. The previous statement is obviously false in my time, however, if you ask any middle school student what they would like to do for a career, you will either get no answer or a brief summary of every career known to man. I’m was never one of those students though. When I start down my path towards a higher education I know exactly which roads I desire. As early as 6th grade I knew that I craved to study the cosmos the envelopes us so completely. When it comes to fields of study, no other topic can nearly match the complexity, scope, and value of astronomy and physics. In my personal experience, I have met many an individual that tries to argue the relevance

I am very proud of myself and the grades I’ve accomplished to improve each year in my high school career. Freshmen year was a little difficult since I had trouble processing work, but sophomore year I improved a little more and reached my standards. I've always tried my best and worked really hard to get the grades I wanted and managed to get them up by junior and senior year. and I feel so proud because it was a goal of mine. I was always a kind and hardworking student and I never gave up. I always ask for help when I needed it and have a better understanding on what I’m doing after high school.

“Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value.” - Albert Einstein. It can easily be said that my high school career was driven by this saying. From the first day of grade nine I decided that I was going to become an active and prominent member of the school community, not for the recognition, but so that when I graduate I can look back on my years at O’Connor and be proud of the mark I left on the school.