Personal Narrative: Moving To Philadelphia

Moving from the South to the Midwest was a huge change in my life. For my whole life I grew up to the southern hospitality and the tang of salt in the air since the beach was always less than 5 minutes away wherever I lived. Now I moved to a place where they flip you off to say hi, and the closest thing to an ocean is a sea of grass that seems to go on forever. Although I am now adapted to the change for the most part, it took me awhile to break in to the social norms of an average Midwest kids.

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 find myself looking over my shoulder every time I step outside my front door. Violence has opened my eyes and destroyed my dreams of peace. When I first moved to Philadelphia from Puerto Rico, I moved into a neighborhood that was full of gangs and drugs. Philadelphia represented a new start, a chance for me to breathe again. I had experienced a tragic shooting right before my ten year old eyes in Puerto Rico; my mom’s best friend was killed, while the murderer calmly walked away. We escaped to Philadelphia, and I thought my days of witnessing horrific violence were over. However, my dreams were shattered like gunshots in the night. One day, while I was napping, I was awoken by a series of deafening pops. As soon as I heard them, I dropped

When I was only four years old, my life changed forever. It was the year I moved to North Carolina. My dad’s friend got him a job opportunity that he simply couldn’t give up. So, he quit his job and found a nice rental house to live in. I had moved before but I don’t remember. I moved from Indiana to North Carolina with my brother my cat and my parents. When I moved to North Carolina, I was aware of what was happening, but I never realized how different everything would be. The house we moved into we only lived in for a year, but it was a pretty hectic year.

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

Many people move around to different states throughout their life, and I have had the opportunity to live in what feels like two different worlds. I have spent most of my life in Bradenton, Florida, but at the age of ten I moved to the small town of Cleveland in the north east Georgia mountains. The two towns are completely different in my opinion and only someone who has lived there would completely understand what I mean when I say two different worlds. The weather, the people, and the different opportunities are just a few of the differences between the two towns.

I was 16 years old when i moved to Cleveland. I had moved from California, a place that everyone thinks of as a area of movie making, opportunities, rich people with fancy lamborghinis and ferraris, well it's nothing like that where i come from. Compton california, the place that you can see 14 year old gang members with guns, get shot just for wearing the wrong color, or just walking down the street like my mom. I never really meet my dad he got locked up when i was 3 on an assault charge so i had to move in with my grandparents in Cleveland.

Through a short path in the woods on a cool evening, I’m riding in a red wagon being pulled by my father. My two sisters little legs are racing down the path to the beach carrying roasting sticks and s’mores supplies. My mom’s concerned voice is yelling out, “Be careful!” as we make our way to the beach, the breeze inviting the smell of salt water to surround me.

It was June of 2013 and I was in my room cooling, watching “Good Luck Charlie”. My mom came into my room saying that she was ready to move out of New York. Obviously I did not want to move out of the city I was born in. My mom never liked living in New York, so she always thought about moving. So the plan was to move in August. Time went by and I was thinking about what North Carolina would be like. I really wasn’t thinking about the friends I was leaving in Brooklyn, that never crossed my mind.

Rosewood. The school I'll be attending for the rest of my three years of high school, and to be completely honest, I'm not al that excited. I'm not good at making friends, which usually ends up with me being alone. Last year I made two friends, Isabelle and Roy. That's only because I had to do a group project with them second term, sure they were nice and welcoming but I never talked to them, I'd smile and wave in the halls or exchange small 'hello's' but other than that I was alone. The only good thing I can think of is that I could have a new outlook and not that of -what the school called me- 'Emo' and I'm not. Perhaps moving to Illinois could be a good thing, but if I get labeled a Emo again it's 9th grade all over again. Three days from now I'll be on my way to my new home..

For me, there are two distinct separations that come to mind, moving into the dorms at Alverno College and moving into my own apartment here in Milwaukee. I was 19 when I first moved into the Alverno dorms and it was the first time I had ever not lived with my parents. There was a level of fear, not only due to being away from my folk but I didn’t know anyone on campus. It was a huge step in separation, not only physically but symbolically as well. Flash forward to this past April, I had taken a semester off after gaining my associate’s from Alverno to figure out what I wanted. In that time, I had moved back in with my parents and was working full time as a nursing assistant at a nursing home. Finally, I had decided to move back to Milwaukee.

I had heard endless stories of my family that lived in Tulsa, but my 10-year-old self never would have imagined that I would come face to face with them. Especially not like this. I spent my entire life moving from city to city, state to state, how could my dad even think about settling down now? And in Tulsa of all places? It was moving day and I knew I could not put off meeting them any longer. As the movers scurried around the house, I anxiously waited in the driveway for my family to arrive. That’s when I saw them coming down the road, five black cars, 10 aunts and uncles and 17 cousins that had been figures of my imagination until this very moment. As the car doors swung open, my mind immediately pictured a clown car as I watched the people pour out of the car. Although everything I had heard made them seem crazy, my heart was racing as I felt a sense of excitement rush over me.

not want him to move to Pocatello. I didn’t want him to take away my stepmom, my brother Zander, and my sister Kyrie. I didn’t want him to take my family from me, I was really close with my stepmom we did things together all of the time and I was Zander and Kyrie’s nanny so I was really close to them they felt like my children, I am the one who started their potty training and worked hardest at it, I am the one who was able to get them into bed at night and I bought them things all the time, took them places and cooked meals and treats for them. I was with them most of the time and I was their favorite sibling, they told me all of the time. Then the next Sunday when I went to my dad’s house it was no longer a question, even though he knew how badly I wanted them to stay because I didn’t want to lose some of the few people that I was close too, he said that they were moving to Pocatello and he accepted the job in Idaho Falls.

Last January I had decided to make one of the biggest decisions of my life and move to Phoenix. Coming from Alaska this was a drastic change for me. I really didn't want to leave but I got a job offer that I just couldn't turn down. Very quickly I learned that Phoenix was as bland and boring as everyone said it would be. No nature, no weather, just buildings and bright sunny days. The first two weeks were fine, but after that I had already explored most of the area and learned that Phoenix just might be one of the most boring cities in America

The family moved to Philadelphia two weeks ago. The children were enrolled in Union Schools, but they haven't been enrolled in Philadelphia. Truancy has been involved with the family in the past, and is currently involved. They went out to the home in Philadelphia on the week prior, and gave the parent a time frame to enroll the kids into school. It was unknown if the mother was awaiting paperwork to transfer. The reporter note concerns for the children overall