Personal Narrative: How She Showed Her Kindness

On a cold December morning snow blanketed the ground while a frozen mist masked the trees. Only the very tops could be seen. I stepped outside and inhaled the clean, crisp Texas air. Still half asleep, I walked to the truck feeling the soft powder compact beneath my boots and the snowflakes melt as they hit my skin. It was the time of year that I had been longing for.

The culture depicted in Miriam Toews’ A Complicated Kindness is a counterculture to modern society and Christianity. Countercultures can have either a negative or positive impact on its members. In the case of East Village, it creates a constricting environment where citizens are unable to expand their mind. It is a fundamentalist Mennonite community where the church is the head of power. The citizens focus most of their energy on being faithful followers of the church to ensure their place in heaven when the rapture comes. As a result, people aren’t given the tools they need to succeed outside of their culturally isolated community. They take the bible literally with no room for interpretation. With the lack of change in the

I got the chance to interview a wonderful person, Ms. Breyonia Sterling. Breyonia resides here in Savannah, Ga and she is 18 years old. Her birthday is April 8th, which qualifies her to be an Aries. Breyonia Sterling is a wonderful person because she has an admirable personality, she is very success- driven, and has some unique favorites. I also learned while interviewing her that we have a lot in common.

When I was in my sophomore year of high school, I had a music teacher named Ms. Valentine who taught vocal and piano classes. Ms. Valentine was known as the “mean dad” of the vocal department, because she oddly reminded everyone of a dad instead of a mother, I know it’s weird. She never took the phrase I can’t from a student, and she would never put up with anyone’s bullshit. She believed there was no such thing as “I can’t”. I had the pleasure of having Ms. Valentine as my choir director, sadly. Ms. Valentine was known for assigning students to critique boring plays and concerts.

I had the pleasure of interviewing Ms. Yvonne Dill who attended UIC (University in Chicago) at the age of 16, which she is extremely proud to say. “I loved it because it was close to my home, and although I was close, I was still able to be independent and live on my own. I did graduate from that school in 4 years.” I am also close to home and I enjoy my independence as well. The only difference between she and I is the fact that I did not attend college at age 16. During her first few weeks as a freshman she admits, “I was not nervous, and I felt as if I was where I belonged. I adjusted very easily, and quickly. Three of my cousins (all two years older than me, two of which are twins) also attended the school, which made the transition very

This is a letter in support of Sally Robertson, a very talented teacher with whom I have had the pleasure of working as her student and her colleague over the course of many years at Georgia Perimeter College.

Sister Muriel, who was also my grandmother, and who I affectionately referred to as granny, was a bit more tired than usual on the eve of December 10, 1958.  Slumber seemed to be calling early, so quietly heading toward the dorm seemed to be the best idea to take her tired body. As her feet climbed the stairs, she could feel the cool breeze against her face, and her body seemed to be a little more difficult going up these steep cement steps, there were so many of them. This evening seemed to encourage reflective thoughts, normally she had a smile for everyone, but tonight her mood a bit melancholy, but then again it could be she had a long day serving, or she missed her deceased husband, Merritt.  However, the quiet, evening allowed her to

As a child, I wrote constantly . From pirate ships to my school’s playground, the settings of my pieces varied, but my main character always remained the same. Jenny Rose, my young heroine, was daring and an explorer at heart. I created Jenny when I was in third grade, along with a series that centered around all of her expeditions. When I faced intimidating or troubling situations, I reacted as if I was Jenny. For years I continued to write about Jenny and her exciting encounters. And eventually, I realized that Jenny’s characteristics were quite similar to mine. Jenny was always someone I admired and wanted to be, but I eventually came to the realization that she was a reflection of who I already was. All of Jenny’s discoveries and experiences

I interviewed my co-worker, Mary Varela. Her family is originally from Little Rock, Arkansas. Her family lived in a small country town surrounded by mountains. One day her dad decided to move to San Francisco, California. Her father was a roofer so therefore San Francisco was a city with more possibilities of job opportunities. After a couple years later, Mary was born. Mary faced many struggles in life but the most that impacted her was her society did not accept her for who she was. Mary has always struggle with her weight.

I’ve learned many things in my English II class here at Infinity ECHS, an example of

On a personal level, Ms. Davis, my theater teacher, helped me through one of the hardest moments of my life, losing a friend to suicide. She was a literal shoulder to cry on and her words of wisdom are ones that I will never forget. In the theater space, she helped me find my voice and my place as a human and as a director. I never would have gained the passion and drive for the arts if it wasn’t for her leadership and her willingness to allow me the opportunity to work as her assistant director.

Meeting Mrs.Jones has changed my life tremendously. She taught me that stealing from people can really hurt them. It hurts them because they have to provide for their families as well as themselves. Mrs.Jones also told me that she wanted things as well as a child, and we talked a little bit about her childhood life. I tried to steal Mrs.Jones purse because I wanted to get a new pair of blue suede shoes. Not knowing that she had a huge family of her own to take care of, deal with, and certainly provide for. After, that we had a discussion and she took me to her house to wash my face, and she also fed me. While, I was sitting at the dinner table she gave me $10, so that I could buy the blue suede shoes. When, walking out of that door, all I could

I’ve always felt it was my obligation to try and help others. For this reason, if I could be any superhero, I’d be Professor Xavier from the X-men of the Marvel universe. I would like to be as intelligent as him and try to help others by telepathy and what they really feel. I would do this to get an understanding of what people really mean when they say something is bothering them. I would help them to feel better about themselves and be a counselor and guide them to succeed.

On one occasion that she made me feel welcomed was when my brother had to go to the hospital in Iowa City. I finished my day out at school then I headed over to her house. She made me feel like everything

In the year of eighteen hundred and ninety six, for a woman at my age to still be living the life of a miss is highly ‘unlady-like’ of me, especially in the heart of the South – Savannah, Georgia. For the most part, my family has me all done up like porcelain doll. Always making sure I am ‘Wedding ready’ as my aunt Martha likes to say. Martha is a kind and noble woman but let me make this very clear those are her words not mine. In my eyes most of what she has to say is redundant. I personally can never tell if the woman is fond of me or thinks I am the spawn of the devil here to fill her daughter‘s head with ideas of a sinful life. Martha speaks to me like she just realized the lemon she bit into is sour. Face always scrunched with nose