Personal Narrative: The Last Decade

    When I was around 6 or 7 years old, my family decided to go to Yosemite National Park over the summer. We went on Saturday and during the morning so we could get there early. After about 30 minutes on the road, we stopped at a resting area. We ate there for about 15 minutes and used the restroom. My dad told us that if we wanted to get there early, we had to go right then. My family and I were back on the road and arrived there in 2 hours. I slept the whole way so I couldn't watch the environment as we passed by. When we got there, we entered the park and ate. I was so excited that I ran ahead of my family. I could feel the cool breeze and smell the fresh tree like scent as I ran. My brother asked if we could split into groups and my dad agreed. We split into groups and we started our adventure. I was with my grandma and my sister. The other group was my dad, my mom, and my brother. We also decided to meet at the a certain point at sunset.

Growing up with a father in the military, you move around a lot more than you would like to. I was born just east of St. Louis in a city called Shiloh in Illinois. When I was two years old my dad got the assignment to move to Hawaii. We spent seven great years in Hawaii, we had one of the greatest churches I have ever been to name New Hope. New Hope was a lot like Olivet's atmosphere, the people were always friendly and there always something to keep someone busy. I used to dance at church, I did hip-hop and interpretive dance, but you could never tell that from the way I look now.

Over my years of school, one big influence on me has always been sports. Ever since a young age, I have always enjoyed playing and watching sports. In my four years in high school, I have fell in love with the sport of lacrosse.

I woke up and took one bite out of my pop tart but that one bite was all I could eat. My legs were shaking, and my heart was pounding. My dad told me, “It is a true honor to even make it this far so go out there and have some fun.” Once I heard this statement, I knew I was ready to go. I arrived at school and boarded the bus. The car ride was an hour and fifteen minutes of hearing the squeaking of the wheel on the bus. My teammates were getting their heads ready for the big game.

Of course the norm for me is that of any citizen living in zone three.

My friend Mason’s Mom took me and Mason to Cedar Point at nine in the morning. We had to drive over a long bridge to get there. We saw signs with funny jokes on them. By the time we got there it was packed we finally found a parking spot.

I could hear footsteps, when I opened my eyes I saw my dad shaking me by the shoulder. That day we were had to get up at 4am and make our way to an entertainment park. We were already 5 minutes late. It was a morning of rushing around and a bit of frustration. After a short shower I grabbed a snack and jumped into the car. We had a 30 minute car ride ahead of us. This was not our car, we had rented one because we were on vacation in Costa Rica. I was in 7th grade then. It was the last month of the year and my dad had saved money for months for this trip it was our 3rd day into the trip with 4 days to go. My 2 brothers Ian and Gage came with us, Gage was only 5 years old, Ian was 13. Once we arrived at the Entertainment park we were right on time. The gates opened at 6am giving us just enough time to get some breakfast . Once we got there I sat down in the waiting room and waited for my dad to sign the waiver papers. After he finished signing we walked outside into a small area, there were harnesses

Walking into the coffee shop where everyone else , including me now, confronts people in their lives and continues to discuss important topics. The decorations around me are plain and simplistic, nothing special about this place whatsoever. I wait patiently for my invite to show, mentally preparing myself for the conversation that I want to have so desperately. I think of the topics I want to bring up and the ones I want to focus on more than others. Nervously, I continue to wait and talk myself out of thinking that they wouldn’t show at all. A few minutes filled with deep breaths later, finally they’re here. I walk over to the table we agreed to meet at, and sat politely before greeting them and waiting for a response. I cleared my throat and looked at my lap, trying to refrain from saying anything I’d regret. Taking a deep breath, I tried to remain professional while addressing the topic. Finally, my attention was brought to the person seated in front of me, to the world in front of me. With all the courage I could muster I stared dead into its

Just so you know, this is the Big Apple and I rule this town. New York City is filled with tall buildings, great culture, and historical sites. No other city has so much beauty that it takes your breath away; yet, there is a real danger that lurks on the streets. I should know because I am Detective Michael Morgan a United States Super Spy in charge of capturing dastardly villains who are set on destroying our world. Armed with mind-altering powers, Alex Higgins is on the top of the FBI’s list of the ten most wanted men in America. This thug is one of the greatest danger to our world and must be captured and jailed in the vault of death. There is no place safe for him to hide from the law and rumor has it, he is in my town. You break the law here in New York City, you pay the ultimate price: freedom.

So, I made a wrong turn today - literally. My brother called to cancel plans while I was driving, and I ended up somewhere in the DEEP south. (cue banjos) But I am wholly confident that God uses every of my wrong turns for his good.

About a year or so later my family and I were out camping, which we did all the time. Now that my brother and sister have moved out we haven’t gone out nearly as much. We were out somewhere in the mountains, we usually did this. We had been out for a couple of days some of us in the camper and the other half of us in tents. This was an especially fun camp. This time we were able to take our dirt bikes with us, which we only ever got to use up at our uncle’s ranch. I remember that I was super excited, but a little bummed, because my dad would only let

One night it was when I lived in Ashwood grove trailer park. It was winter and there was snow all over the ground. My parents and I thought it was a good idea to invite a bunch of people over. We ended up kind having a party. My parents were a little tipsy, so they wanted to bring out our four wheelers.

In the summer before seventh grade, my church had inflatable waterslides out one Wednesday for the children’s department (I wasn’t yet in the youth). My dad was out of town for his work, so my mom, little brother, and I went with two of my friends; they currently attend Bartlett Ninth Grade Academy with me. My friends were also going to spend the night with me. We went down the waterslides, ate snow cones, and had fun.

When I was in third grade, my sister and my dad went to drive up to our lake house in Pennsylvania on my dad’s motorcycle. They left early in the morning and they

One morning my dad and I woke up in our hotel room watching the glorious sunrise and were quietly walking down the hallway of the hotel to go to the lobby. In the lobby, there were these huge advertisement banners hanging up that said, "Take a roll through the desert." There were pictures of people riding ATV's in the desert so we decided to go on an adventure.