The ' The Meat '

Being the oldest child can be challenging, but very rewarding. Especially being a first generation university student in a household of 2 or more children. I am the oldest child, meaning all of the responsibility was placed on me. I was expected to have the best grades, outstanding manners as well as keep a smile on my face every time one of my 3 little siblings break a vase at a family friend’s house. I was the child who would have to watch over the children while my parents were at work, serve them lunch while my parents were out buying groceries, take them to football and basketball practices while my parents were preparing dinner at home. I was the third parent, and that has always been on me since before I could speak. I grew up feeling

Each child has his or her own personality. Typically the firstborn is a natural leader, while the last is always the baby, but what about the overlooked middle child? The middle child can sometimes feel lost in the crowd when it comes to family dynamics. They crave their parent’s attention and are willing to do anything to believe they have it, but immediately close up when it comes to conflict, they become people pleasers. They will do anything to make their parents, or others, happy. This makes the middle child a skilled peacemaker and negotiator (Varma, 2013). They are amazing listeners because of the fact they hate conflict,

My first cheerleading tryout had been so much more nerve wracking than I would ever think. Around 4 years ago, my friend told me how her cheer team were having tryouts and I should join. Right away I said yes, but I wasn't exactly serious about being a cheerleader. With tryouts just around the corner my friend, Jo, helped teach me some of the basics. I straight away thought i was pro and ready for

Right then I thought to myself, “does this mean I'm that good?!” But I didn't believe myself so I just went back to my spot and continued doing what the rest of the girls were doing. The next day was the tryouts, I was super nervous about them because they were going to be in front of the high school coaches, a bunch of other coaches and it was high school cheer tryouts.

I am a middle child. I am not the assertive, naturally confident first-born, nor am I an attention-seeking youngest child; I am the quiet, quintessential middle child. For the first 16 years of my life, I was always an afterthought to the craziness of my two sisters, and I loved it‒ it made me independent and self-reliant. I have always been very comfortable being the easy-going child, happily accepting anything that comes my way. Never have I felt that my parents loved me any less; they merely had to worry less about me than they did my siblings, with their stubbornness and constant desire for affirmation. I easily slid under the radar, preferring to mind my own business and handle problems on my own. There was never anything wrong with my

Again, tryouts came for the next greuling school year. The only difference from last year, I was prepared. I knew the cheers, I knew the feeling of standing in front of crowd so ecstatic from a winning game and I knew the feeling of a crowd sitting at a loss for words in the face of defeat. I knew my goal and I was absolutely determined to reach it. I could only be described as a lioness on the prowl and the Varsity squad was my prey. Just as anxious as the year before, though this time with a hint of confidence, I made my tryout a culmination of completely everything I had learned from my wildly experienced past. That night, I reached my ultimate goal and earned the prized name of Varsity cheerleader. The next day I practically walked around with an enormous V on my forehead, honored by the position. With all this positivity, I knew there was something to come. That same summer, I hadn’t received a lucky chance to become even a contender in the

Every since my friend Layla was little she had always dreamed of being on her high school cheer team. She would often call me over to her house just to show me new moves that she had learned from watching videos on YouTube. Once she got into middle school she had no problem with making the team she even got picked captain from 6th through 8th grade. She pretty much had guaranteed spot on the high school squad. That tragically all ended when she found out she had to switch schools. She had to leave this atmosphere where she had made a name for herself, knew everyone, and everyone was pretty much African American or mixed to an all white school.

I made sure to act very confident at tryouts so it would not be a repeat of the year before. The high school tryouts felt completely different. I was more confident, louder, and overall a better cheerleader. All the hard work I put in really paid off. The day after tryouts, I remember I was in the parking lot of the eye doctor’s office when the teams had been posted. I was so nervous I would be let down again, so I made my mom check first. Typically freshman year girls cheer for the freshman team, but my mom did not see my name there. Panicking, I took her phone and double checked scrolling to see the other teams. Sure enough, my name was not on the freshman team. My name was under junior varsity! I surpassed my goal I made a team that only a few girls my age

Being on the team for my first year was the turning point of my life. I was the beginner who could not learn the dances as fast as the other girls. I felt alone and a burden to the team. The hardest thing I had to deal with was not making the

Junior year of high school I had reached my limits and had become clinically depressed. I had no interest in school, and I had considered quitting my schools cheerleading team. I felt alone and underwhelmed with where I had imagined my life was going to go. My dream was to become a state champion with cheerleading and to place in the top 10 at the National High School Cheerleading Championship, I had already made amends with the idea that it was an unreachable goal. I had completly given up. Ready to quit, one of my teammates had taken notice in my dismissive persona, she had also brought it to the attention of the rest of my team. They began to push me harder then they he'd ever pushed before. They helped me realize that I was great again.

Ten years ago, if someone had told me that I would be a cheerleader at the collegiate level, I would most likely have laughed in their face. Now as I sit here getting ready for practice, I laugh thinking of how I entered the world of cheerleading. Going into my freshman year of high school, my mother told me I had to try out for cheerleading. So, naturally, I cried. There was no way I would be a cheerleader. But as they say, mothers know best. Growing up, I participated in every sport imaginable; gymnastics, basketball, track, lacrosse, and even golf. Changing activities often became familiar for me, as I would get bored quite easily. After I had made the decision to take up cheerleading full time, I felt like I was downgrading. I felt

I take pride in having a strong relationship with every girl from the Frosh/Soph team to the Varsity squad. I may not be a captain, but I know I am an influential leader on the team. I have witnessed my team losing with no spirit and dominating with energy and determination after I come off the bench cheering and high-fiving everyone. It will always be easier for some to give up and blame others for losing or not playing, but it’s more fun to be enthusiastic and spirited. I plan on always being a positive and self-motivated person because there is nothing I love more than hyping up my team and improving their morale, particularly when it helps spur us to

I have always been the youngest. I was the youngest of a rather large family of seven. My parents, then two girls, then three boys. Me being the last of the boys. I was five when it all began. I was living in Sheffield, England and my parents had been thinking about adoption for a little while. One day when we all met in the conservatory for devotions, Mom and Dad walked in purposefully and started devotions by saying,”Kids, we have been thinking about adding a member to our family. We want to adopt.” The room got quieter and everyone was still while Mom and Dad waited for a reaction. I had absolutely no idea what in the world that meant, but the word sounded sharp so I liked it. I quickly learned that it meant “finding a kid whose parents couldn’t take care of them, and bringing them into our family and making them our son, or daughter, brother or sister.” I liked the idea and was all for it. Mom and Dad warned us that it would not be easy to adopt. We discussed the what it would take and what it would mean for us. I’ll admit I didn’t understand most of it, but I did understand that I was getting a new sibling, and that some things would change. If I only knew how much…

There are events during cheerleading that change freshman year for me. When I first join cheerleading, I didn’t know many people, and there were about twenty girls on the team, and I only would talk to about five girls. I was able to accomplish many things, such as relearning stunts, and I became successful with cheerleading. When I relearned these things, I felt so proud of myself because I haven’t done cheerleading in six-seven years, and I was able to accomplish the things I’ve wanted to do. This is what happened to me when I join cheerleading again, and I realized how fun it was again.

Even though youngest siblings always try to do what they can to not be compared to their siblings, being the youngest does not always have perks. We do not get as much attention like our older siblings do and we sometimes do not feel the same love the parents give to their first-born.