Kiana Gatson
English 10
6/16/11
1. Describe the world you come from — for example, your family, community or school — and tell us how your world has shaped your dreams and aspirations.
There are never enough words to describe the world I come from. How could I put all the tragedy, and suffering that has happened in my life, in just a few describing words. However, I could give a brief run down on how my life contributes to my dreams and aspirations. I come from a family that works hard, supports my decisions, protects me from danger as best as they know how. A family who appreciates life and know how to live life the best way they can. My family, even though they are hard working and hard competitors in our competitive world, we are not as wealthy as we would like. The storie’s of job abuse and stress that is caused by work has been around in my family for generations. Just hearing these stories about these jobs breaking my family, makes me crumble. How could anyone allow such wrong treatment and still feel as though they are human instead of animals.
My grandfather, the first African American police officer in San Francisco, was blamed for raping a white women, and even though no one could find proof and evidence, and even though the women’s story did not stay the same in the times of court trials, he was still stripped of his badge and permanently fired from law enforcement. My mother, who has been working at the Oakland Post Office for longer than I have been alive, is treated with no respect or kind treatment. Her supervisors push her around and get her to do any kind of work they feel like assigning her. It is not an easy job. Her rank in the post office seems as though it doesn’t mean anything to anyone. Everything I see and hear from my family’s horrific work stories only causes me to want to help out. It makes me want to bring in some money so that my family wouldn’t have to work as hard as they do. So the struggles and strife surrounding my family is what shapes my dreams and aspirations.
My future career and my future studies are devoted only to fulfill my dreams of becoming my own boss. Business will be my major so that in college so when the time comes, I can have my own business and manage my own income. As devoted and determined as I am about helping my family with money, I know I will be able to accomplish these goals so they could have a better life, stress free. To add to the fire that burns within me to try and save my family from the evils that come with their jobs, I already am doing something to help my career; cosmetology school. Receiving my license my senior year in high school, I will be able to have a certificate of completing my studies of hair, skin, and nails.
So what I plan to do with my life in the future, and all the things I am doing now that will add up to my accomplishments, gives me the courage and the strong beliefs that I will carry out my goals and finish them until I have succeeded and gotten where I want to be. All in all, my family is the main reason why my dreams and aspirations are as they are.
2. Tell us about a personal quality, talent, accomplishment, contribution or experience that is important to you. What about this quality or accomplishment makes you proud and how does it relate to the person you are?
Since I was a young child I had trouble with finding something I was good at. I felt like I had to find something that I liked and that didn’t copy my older siblings, but it wasn’t easy. Coming from such a talented family, I didn’t know what I could do that could make me a unique individual and give me my own personality. One of my sister sings, one raps and produces music, another sister majors in theater arts. My brother is a drawing artist, and the talents in my family are endless. I doubted that I could do anything because I had a set mind that I wasn’t good at anything. I believed that I would fail at whatever I tried to do and my multi-talented family would think of me as a disgrace. So I thought. Not only for a month or two but for years. What could I do that I could be proud of? It took me a long time to figure it out.
Athletics. In my elementary years I finally decided to ask my mom if I could take cheerleading lessons. She let me and I loved it, I loved the feeling being in a cheerful atmosphere. I won medals and awards I never thought I could win. After that phase was over I wanted to try something new but with the same exciting rush as the sport I tried before. Gymnastics was my next choice. I did that for a couple of years and was so good at it that the first day I joined my team, I was moved two ranks higher because I was too advanced for the first and second ranks. I like to believe that some of my cheerleading experiences had something to do with it. After a couple years passed I developed skills I was amazed with. I won medals for those athletic skills, but when gymnastics was over, I thought back to what I used to think when I was younger. The silly thoughts of me being a failure disappeared completely.
My flexibility gave me strength. It gave me a reason to feel like I am important in the world, and like I could be a threat to anyone who tried to make me anything less of what I am. My achievements gave me the power to realize that my accomplishments made me the person that I am because I noticed that I could do anything I believe I can do. It made me realize that I can achieve the unthinkable if my thoughts are positive and my mind is right. The universe works in magnificent ways and feeds of energy both positive and negative. Life is what you make it.
