Unbiased Me Narrative

I lived in a small trailer home with my mom, dad, older brother and younger brother. I loved that little trailer, even if it was not the best, I still called it home. Even though I loved that place, there were times when I noticed that my parents would struggle financially and they wanted us to have more than a little home, they wanted the best for us. There were also personal difficult obstacles we had to overcome as a family. As a result, my mom went back into college to study for a Registered Nurse. I didn’t spend as much time with my mom as one child wishes they could, but I knew she was working lots of hours and going to class just to be able to give us the life she thought we deserved. The same applies for my dad, I knew he would come home from work in pain, exhausted, but he was doing it all for his kids. As I was growing up and noticing these things about them, I began to admire them and loved how

Throughout the seventeen years that I’ve been alive I have witnessed all the sacrifices my parents have gone through ensuring I have a better future than they did. I come from immigrant parents that weren’t fortunate enough to continue studying. I myself was brought into the country when I was two years old so I could build a different path than the one my parents had to take due to financial reasons. Short after, my sister was born my mom got remarkably ill with Diabetes. I would watch in terror as my mother would lay in bed barely able to move. I held her hand, wiped her forehead, with a cool wet towel, and longed she would get all better. Being the oldest in the

One day as my mom was walking to school, she bumped into my father. They met and fell in love. They got married, moved out and started their lives. The day they got married, they made a promise to themselves. “Promise that from now on we are going to give us a better

As the oldest of three siblings, I have had to do many things for myself that my younger brother and sister had done for them. For example, I had to fend for myself in attempting to obtain a driver’s license even paying someone to teach me to drive and take me to the exam, while my siblings had help from my mother in all aspects of the process. Also, the loss of my father has resulted in conflicts with the remaining parent, my mother. These conflicts were the result of economic struggle and disagreements about how to spend the monetary benefits left from my father’s passing. The position in my family as first‐born combined with the conflicts in my family, have led to life‐changing decisions such where to live, and what careers to pursue.

For as long as I can remember, my parents always showed their care for me, and with everything they did, they kept their children in mind. Although what they did wasn’t always in the best interests of my siblings and I, they never intended to harm us. What strengthened our love even more was all of the struggles we faced together. These things, although shocking to others, are what strengthened our family’s bond. Even after my father became a serious alcoholic, he never stopped caring for us. My love for him and my mother reciprocated this. Throughout my childhood, my mother and father never stopped trying to do the best for their kids. They simply did it in their own special ways. Because of their dedication to me, I never gave up on them, even if at times, it may not have been the best idea.”

When I was a baby, my sister and I were placed in a foster home. I didn’t have a mother or a father, and while I did have clothes and toys, I had never felt the true love that only a parent could give. My sister and I lived in a foster home until she was 3 and I was 4. It was normal for us, and we never realized parental love was missing from our lives.

This conversation is another depiction of how this unlikely tragedy and dysfunction led to a stronger family

Making the choice of escaping from your comfort zone into something that’s entirely unfamiliar to me has definitely broaden my perspective of how growing up can be a challenge, especially when it’s done alone. Being in a comfortable environment for the past eighteen years has brought me nothing but joy and happiness. I appreciated Miami’s dazzling palm trees and the fresh ocean breeze, however, despite my affection I have towards my beloved city, I did have the urge to break away from my home and attempt to do something out of the ordinary, and that was making the decision of going out of state for college. Now, my reason for leaving Miami was not because I was ‘sick of it’, on the contrary, I enjoyed the vast culture Miami had to offer, from

Florida is a state known for fun in the sun, which is why it's probably called the "Sunshine State." One of the most exciting things about Miami is going to the beach. For example, my favorite beach is called Haulover Beach. It has rocks that seem like each curve was carved into it for a specific reason. It is also very relaxing to lay down on the warm sand and hear the melodious sound of the waves hitting the rocks while looking up at the clear cerulean sky. The salty, floating breeze of Miami's weather is a mix of excitement and relaxation. It is truly a breath-taking sight to

Sometimes in life it is better to take a step back and look at the greater picture. With all the hardships and struggles life can put on an individual, it’s sometimes easy to slip and slide, losing the quintessence of “the Me”. Whether its a father trying to multitask by going to work, providing for his family, and spending quality time with his family or a student with the pressure of keeping up his school grades, trying to get involved in clubs and sports, and attempting to make a couple of brand new friends, we are forgetting to ask ourselves something. Where is the time allotted for hobbies, enjoyment and self-discovery? Where is the time to get to truly know “the Me”?

My father continued to work as a probation officer and provided the financial support his family needed. We we’re upper middle class, and finances weren’t an issue. Fast forward nine years and my parents got divorced. Suddenly we had one income, and two households. My father still supported all four of us as he had done when we were living under one roof, but the money was now going to two electric bills, two water bills, and two mortgages. Needless to say, we were living paycheck to paycheck. But we made it work. We figured out how to survive financially as a family. My mother went back to work and my brother and I became each other’s babysitters, looking after each other while our parents did what was necessary. Our situation was less than ideal, and of course both of our parents would have wanted to “have it all” and be there more as my brother and I grew up, but it wasn’t practical. My parents didn’t have the luxury to take time off work to spend more time at home—our family couldn’t afford

Back in 2012, when my family decided to move to the United States, I was upset of leaving my friends and life style for a new life. My mother attempted to talk to me, but I reminded disappointed. I was only a kid blind by a bad tempered. After a long week of holidays, my father had a conversation with me not only he was trying to persuade me into moving out of the country without him, but also to take care of my mother and brothers for him. This was a huge responsibility for me, being “the man and leader of the house” was like receiving the greatest promotion of my teen life.

Some might say I am intimidating based on how I look – six foot four, two hundred twenty-five pounds. Others who know me, know me as the optimistic, down-to-earth, good-natured man that I am. They’d say, “John Star, intimidating? Ha! No way! He’s like a big, blue-eyed teddy bear!” My style of dress is like that of a modern, peppy, young adult – khakis and a collared shirt, every day. I am relatable. I am comforting. I am the best candidate for Senator of Michigan.

To this day, I can still remember standing at the end of my driveway watching my mother arrive home from the bus stop. This day was different; she was not coming home empty handed. In fact, she had stopped at a yard sale on the way home and bought a prize for me, a doll named Suzy. This memory, from the age of two, embraces the story of my mother and my entire childhood. In Indianapolis, Indiana in September 1980, I was born to a single mother. Throughout her life, she worked for the phone company in downtown Indianapolis. Even though she raised us through hardships and despair, she always took the time to love my brother and me outwardly. Until second grade, I have no recollection of my father visiting more than three occasions. At last, in fourth grade we began to spend weekends at his house and with his family. Sadly, when I was eleven we learned that my father had cancer. One week before Christmas, after a school music program, I read his obituary in the paper and told my mother he had passed away. From that moment, our family forever changed, specifically my relationship with my mother.

Looking back on my childhood before August of 2016, I can say I’ve had a sheltered, carefree, and rather easy life. I was content with all aspects of my life; I had wonderful friends, had been a straight “A” student for my entire educational career, had a relatively well-paying job for a fourteen-year-old boy, and my family and all those around me seemed equally satisfied and pleased with their lives. This would change in early August of 2016. The sudden and terrible news hit me in such a way that I felt as if the wind had been knocked out of me. When my parents announced they were getting a divorce, it astonished me because I did not foresee its coming. I sat aghast, unable to comprehend the words which had just assailed my ears. I felt feeble and vulnerable to the world, as if a strong enough breeze would be able to whisk me away, and I hoped it would, to create distance between myself and the situation.