My Personal Narrative

gives me advice to lead me through the journey of life. She has influenced me since I was little, and I am luckier than a leprechaun to have her as my cousin. She teaches me life lessons such as, how to be myself around others, how to cope with issues in school, and has even pushed me to make decisions that will help give me opportunities I thought I could never have.

I have lived in only one location my entire life: Edwardsville, Illinois. A peripheral suburb of St. Louis, it stands as the rare oasis of people in a desert of corn, pinned in its own personal bubble. Due to this blend of time and isolation, I developed a natural familiarity with my hometown. But, throughout my childhood, I longed to break free from the confines of the bubble and venture outward. However, this changed last summer, as I walked through Richards Brickyard, our family heirloom, that my great-grandfather, Benjamin Richards, founded over 120 years ago. I felt these childlike sentiments slip away. The bubble that had surrounded me for so long began to vanish, and the picture that it had been obscuring was slowly revealed.

She has taught me a lot of lessons. She gives me advice on how I should act and she knows when I’m upset. She is like a second mother. I grew up with her and we are 5 years apart. She has helped me become a better person.

When I am having troubles of my own and need someone who will truly listen, she gives me great advice whether I like the outcome or not. She has guided and molded my sister and I into young ladies who know their self worth and who will not back down from anything. I have always looked up to my mother because she is strong as an ox, and by that I mean mentally, physically, and emotionally. She is simply this compared to any one I have ever met. As I have grown each day I follow her and pay attention to the things she does because one day I hope I can become at least half as great as she is. I say half because honestly, I don’t know if anything can beat

It's a Friday afternoon, I plan to go to Great Wolf Lodge in an hour with my church. I see one of my friends so he says to his mom “ Hey, that's my friend” I said “Crap” So I go inside to sign in to go and see my friends just sitting in a corner on a big sofa. We are listening to music and just talking then a green bus comes.

It was just the beginning of February. The winter cold, brutal, and yet normal for the people living in Michigan. My best friend Brian, his uncle Craig, and I were driving back together from Craig’s up north cottage. Brian and I were riding passenger with Craig in his Chevy Silverado pick-up. We were coming back from the annual Perchville Polar Bear Plunge that took place in Tawas, Michigan. A lot was on my mind since it was the second semester of my senior year, and graduation was right around the corner. I had no idea what I wanted to do, or where my future would take me.

I started playing volleyball in 3rd grade. My dad wanted me to play because my sister also played. It was my first day being a 3rd grader and my dad told me I should get into volleyball. From there I wasn’t sure if I wanted to play. I watched my sister play every game and it looked like it was hard so I didn’t think I could do it.

She helps me to think positive and that I can get through anything if I put my mind to it. I learned that take people’s advice even if you don’t like them, they might have some tips to help a person out that no one can figure out. I’ve always had Mariah’s back when she’s down or something and I know she’ll always have mine. The best way to figure something out is to go through it. It’s also good to have friend that is close to you like a sibling that you can always trust and go to for help.

My eyes fluttered open and I found myself there again. I always find myself in the same place, stuck in the exact moment of time when it all happened. I struggled to get a hold of myself. Is this a memory or am I still in Afghanistan?

It was a cool friday evening. We had just finished scrimmaging at Fisher Field, and we were all loading onto the bus. We made our way to the school and went home. I remember calling my dad so he can come and pick me up. Once my dad came around I was thinking about what my mom made for dinner, and how much homework I had to do that night. I got home safely, and started walking towards the house until I hear my little sister coming up to the door to greet me. I found it strange, as she never does this. I greeted her back, and made my way to my room to put my bag away. I made my way back downstairs to go and eat, but I saw my mom sitting there and smiling. She told me to come over and guess what she had on her lap. I had an idea to what she

The summer during 7th and 8th grade was the best summer that I’ve ever experienced! I had so much fun and made so many unforgettable memories with both my friends and my family. I even met a few celebrities, including Honey Boo Boo while down in Panama City, Florida! Summer has always been one of my favorite seasons because everyone can stay up late and sleep in as late as they want to. Just like everyone else, I relaxed by the pool for the majority of the summer.

I was born in Willington, CT and my family (which was only my father and mother at the time), and we lived there until right before my 5th birthday. Two days before my 5th birthday, we moved to Lexington, and I have gone to school in Lexington since kindergarden. My mother is Japanese and my father is American and he speaks Japanese more or less fluently. This meant that my first language was Japanese; even though I lived in Massachusetts I actually did not start speaking English until I was around 4 years old. My little brother, Tyler, was born a year after my family moved to Lexington. Since my brother and I are six years apart it is hard for my family to have “family days” because of our difference in interests. Tyler is a soccer player

She has advised me for all of my schooling years. She has taught me about a good work ethic and focus. She does not accept anything but the best and this pushes me to try my hardest. The best thing my mom does for me is read over my papers, and makes sure they are the best work I can do. When she does this she tells me the mistakes I have made, but does not tell me where they are. I have to find them myself and by this I learn how find my mistakes on my own. These are many skills my mom has taught me throughout my schooling years. My mom also makes me feel comfortable with my status at school. She realized that I was new to KO, and that the workload would be much bigger compared to last year. She always tells me to take one thing at a time rather than looking at all my work. This has definitely helped me throughout this year because I have been able to focus on one thing at a time and do it great, and then look at another assignment and to it just as good as the last. If my mom would have not given me this advice I would had rushed through all of my assignment, and not taken the time to understand them. Thanks to all of my moms mentoring I have been able to succeed in school, and enjoy doing it

I have always believed in Christ since I was a little girl. But it wasn’t until I made the decision to follow him when I truly started to have faith and believed. Following him has mold me into the person I am today. Growing up my grandparents and parents set a good example of how living for Christ should look like. They were always involved in church. My grandpa was a deacon for over forty years and my grandma open her house to many people from the church. Both of my parents became a Christian in their teenage years. They both serve in ministry at our local church. My mom sings in the choir and my dad is a deacon. They have hosted a small bible group in our home for over seven years. Seeing my grandparents and parents serve the lord taught

I am forever grateful for everything she has done for me. She approached me to get me to eat with her freshman year, and that was the turning point in my life. Anytime I went through a rough patch or fell down, she was there to pick me back up. With late night talks during movie marathons in the living room, cleaning up the blood oozing from my cuts, and wiping away the tears I cried. Taylor slowly stitched me back together where I was torn