Personal Narrative: Moving To Grand Rapids

When you envision a place called Twin City you may think about it being a big place, I

4,097 people. That was the population of Centralia Missouri in 2011. Moving had never been an issue for me, when your dad is in the military you get used to it. This time it was different than any other time. My parents were divorcing and my mom was forcing me to move to a town with only 4,097 people opposed to my home in Virginia with 225,401 people.

I pray all is well with you and that you’re staying dry this weekend. I wanted to write to you just to be open about life for me right now. We had a conversation a few weeks back about me moving to Miami, FL and as time has passed I am more convinced that it is important that if possible, that I should make the move. As a disciple of Jesus Christ, my purpose in life is to seek and save those that are lost – to share my faith and help those who desire live for God to do so. I have been asked by my church (which has been my sole support since moving to Gainesville) to move to Miami on a supplemental mission team to help strengthen the church that was planted about one year ago now. I have prayed about this multiple times and each time I ask God

At the age of ten years old, I had just moved to Arizona and didnt have any friends. I was scared in a new place and we had moved alot so didnt want to make friends if we were going to move again.

On a scorching Saturday morning in Georgia, I tossed and turned in my bed as my slumber was interrupted by my dad screaming "Family meeting!". I cringed at the thought of being deprived of my favorite blue, plush blanket. I dragged myself down the steps and into the dining room that felt like a Russian winter on my skin. As I sat down, my dad looked guilty, curling his lip and clicking his fingernails against one another. He looked at my little brother Leslie, my oldest sister Kyra and me with a sombre glance as if he were saying "I'm sorry". My dad told us that he received a promotion back in our original home in Chesapeake, Virginia. Hearing this I bit my lip, holding back my sorrow as I tried to appear thrilled for my dad's advancement in the company.

I moved to Utah, January 3, 2000. Moving to Utah at age 20, had some definite “culture” shocks after growing up in California. I noticed when I first went to the grocery store; the store didn’t have a liquor section. A weird thing to notice for someone who doesn’t drink alcohol, but until then, grocery stores always had big displays for alcohol. The biggest New Year’s ever, had only been 3 days prior! Prince’s song, “1999” was forever going to be about the past! Where were the displays? What was this strange new place I’d moved to? What was I going to discover next, stores closed on Sunday? Were there some weird laws in place to “make” people obey?

When I was nine years old my father went to prison. Since he was a single parent, I was forced to relocate to Washington State to live with my grandparents. Moving to Washington was one of the worst things that I thought could happen at the time, even though it ended up strengthening me as a person. I was forced to leave my friends, school, father and all of my other family members. I was taken from everything I knew and was left very confused and conflicted.

“We are moving to Arizona. It’s your decision whether or not you come with us.” As a seven year, old girl, this was one of the hardest things to hear from the woman I was supposed to trust most, my mom. I had to make a decision whether or not to move across the country with my mom and a stranger, or move in with my dad and stay near my family. I immediately responded with “I will be staying in Massachusetts”. Although I knew that this decision would flip my world upside down, I didn’t know how much I would personally change because of it. In that moment, I didn’t know that I wouldn’t be seeing my mom for another year. I didn’t know that our relationship would never be the same again. That one sentence changed the whole course of my life. In that split-second decision, I went from a seven-year-old little girl, blind to the reality of life, into a mature young girl forced to swallow the idea of her mother leaving her behind.

Michigan's capital and my current place of residence. DeWitt is wonderful place for children to spend their early years, and for many of my acquaintances, still a nice place to live. When I was young, Dewitt was a growing and friendly community. The atmosphere was brimming with positive attitudes and possibilities. It sounds corny, but honestly driving down the street, with every waving arm offering a warm welcome, you would think you entered a cheesy family sitcom neighborhood.

As a child, I was fixated on the idea of growing up and how I would contribute to the world in my own peculiar way, but I never contemplated how my Rockford, Michigan Community would impact my personal view of life. The experiences I have had as a result of being part of this Community have not only impacted my personal view of life, but they have also made me come to the conclusion that a Community should exemplify values of leadership and commitment.

Growing up in Michigan, my childhood was anything but serene. I faced adversity at a young age, being bullied and picked on by other kids all my life for being slightly different. I was very skinny kid with lots pimples, jet black hair, and very insecure. Everyone has insecurities that remains dormant their from childhood. My list of insecurities came directly from my childhood dealing with authority figures and people of power such as my father. I always wanted to please others before pleasing myself and gain their approval others. One thing I could not tolerate any type of constructive criticism or feedback from anyone growing up. This clearly effected me once I entered the workforce later on in life. I was described as hyper sensitive and

During summer vacation my family moved to Fresno and I was so excited because there were a lot of kids playing outside. I went to a game that people were playing and they called it, kick the can. I went up to the person who picked the teams and asked if I could play but he said "you can't play because your to chubby". I felt so sad because nobody has ever told me that so I went back to my parents.

At first I thought fathers protect you, help you, and love you, but I never knew that they ignore you for beer or even abandon you with a lie… a simple lie. To leave you, your Mom and sibling … hopeless. That was my darkest time of my life, or was it?

My family moved to Saint Cloud to get closer to family, other Anuak families (An ethnic group from South Sudan, Ethiopia, The Gambela Region) , and My parents found a better job. My family lived in Tennessee before moving to Clermont, Minnesota then, moved to Faribault and Saint Cloud. The pull factors were moving closer to cousins and uncle/aunts and better jobs. The push were my parents didn’t have any family in Tennessee.

I needed an idea on how to approach a person in NY that I have never met or had contact with before. I thought an email might be helpful but the many times I started one, I just stared at a blank screen. I was really lost on how to begin my approach. I knew what I wanted to say, I was a little afraid of sounding like a stalker.