Turning Tassel.
I believe that graduation day is a meaningful day for everyone, we all have different thoughts, diverse emotions, and we are all excited to think we have accomplished a short-term goal in our way to attain our long-term goals. I graduate from Palm Beach Lakes Community High School. It was one of the most awaited days of my life.
I was seated on my couch contemplating the contrast that makes a full-length portrait of a black woman with her afro hair, black eyes, and her white smile that showed her beauty; with the pale pink color of the living room wall. Thinking how fast I have grown. Comprehending that in a blink of an eye life passes without us even realizing, how much we have learnt from those school years. Suddenly, I heard a buzz from the front door which it makes me jump with fright and forget what I was thinking. I see my Grandmother dress in a shirt of white, grey and light purple flowers with a black trousers, with her hair totally white and a smile on her face handing me a letter she says “congratulations Mija, I am proud of you”, when she gives me the lett...
Graduating high school was really exciting for me, but at the same time I was apprehensive because I knew it was a significant milestone in my life and I didn't know what to expect with college. However, the freedoms provided by college ending up being wonderful. I love being able to completely manage my time on my own and make my own decisions. I graduate college next May. If I were not going to grad school I would probably be dreading it because I don't think I'm ready for the "real world" and having a 9-5 job yet. So, since I am continuing my education it's going to be exciting since I will be moving to a new state and meeting new people.
I rushed out of the bedroom confused. I began to realize what was going on. I ran to where I last saw her and she was not there. Never before I felt my heart sank. My eyes filled with tears. I dropped to my knees and felt the cold white tile she last swept and mopped for my family. I look up and around seeing picture frames of of her kids, grandchildren, and great grandchildren smiling. I turn my head to the right and see the that little statue of the Virgin Mary, the last gift we gave her. I began to cry and walked to my mother hugging her. My father walked dreadfully inside the house. He had rushed my great grandmother to the hospital but time has not on his side. She had a bad heart and was not taking her medication. Later that morning, many people I have never seen before came by to pray. I wandered why this had to happen to her. So much grief and sadness came upon
I clearly remember being woken up by Ma at five-thirty in the morning so I could take a shower and proceed to getting ready. Several hours later, after having my hair and makeup finished, and having put on the dress, we were ready to head out. I didn’t dare catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror until I was ready to leave, and I remember feeling something cold run swiftly down my spine as I stared into the reflection of a girl I could hardly recognize. Still astounded by that encounter, we walked to our local temple for a brief ceremony before heading to “La Hacienda”, where family and friends were already waiting for us. The moment I stepped into the vivid garden of the venue, the world around me came to an abrupt stop. I inhaled the fresh floral scent that completely filled my lungs, and what was left of my consciousness could only distinguish specks of silver and purple from the decorations. When I returned from the trance, I was welcomed by the clapping hands of our guests as the banda played “Las Mañanitas”. We steadily walked over to our table and after getting set up we made a toast and proceeded to having our meals. This was just the beginning of a very long day, as later on in the evening we would begin the dance, which was very special to me in many
Since I did not know anyone else was my mother. According to my sister, we lived in our house alone, without any guardian guiding, or caring for my siblings and I. We ate our meals at my Aunt Gloria’s since we did not have any food at our own house. Moreover, It was a norm in El Salvador, the male to abuse their wives and children. Our cousins were our bullies; they saw their own mother abused by their alcoholic father. I asked my sister Yenis recently, “Why our cousins bullied us?” She said, “When you did not finish your meal, they would force you to finish your meal by smacking you.” When I was slightly older, I remembered I was standing on a ledge my grandfather build to prevent landslides. When I was standing on the ledge, I was thinking about how tall the ledge was, I looked to my right at my cousin when he pushed me, forcing me to fall down to the bottom of the ledge. I remember going in and out of consciousness. My grandfather picked me up from the ground and brought me inside my grandmother’s house. During the time, my grandmother clamored at my cousin, Yessica, to get warm water and rags. I remember feeling the warmth of the blood dripping down the back of my head. My grandparents did not take me to the hospital with the limitations they possessed. As a neglected parentless child I became withdrawn and
...fe and succeeding that I broke the chain in deciding to be different in standing out from my family. Even though, on my graduation day I should have been more exciting now I can see why it was the most important day of my life because on that day I should have said YES!! Made it this far. Graduating high school was my minor goal and was accomplished. The fact that my minor goal was accomplished made me realize that anything is possible. That day when I realized what graduation should have meant to me made me a better and setting high standards for myself.
It was an early Wednesday morning, and I lay still in my bed hitting the REM cycle as I dream vividly about a young lady about to be wed. She was dancing in a field of wheat and sunflowers. She was a country girl of whom I had never seen in my life, but in my dream, I knew her. It seemed I had known her family too, they were hillbillies and she was the pride and joy of their family, a shining star on her family crest. She had long, slinky, dark chestnut hair that was pulled up for such an occasion, Decorated with a fresh flower from the fields. She wore a form fitted white dress that looked as if it was her mama’s passed onto her. In her hands were an array of hot pink, sassy orange, and depressed purple Gerber Daisies wrapped precisely with an off white ribbon. She twirled distantly from her family knowin...
As I walked through the door of the funeral home, the floral arrangements blurred into a sea of vivid colors. Wiping away my tears, I headed over to the collage of photographs of my grandfather. His smile seemed to transcend the image on the pictures, and for a moment, I could almost hear his laughter and see his eyes dancing as they tended to do when he told one of his famous jokes. My eyes scanned the old photographs, searching for myself amidst the images. They came to rest on a photo of Grandpa holding me in his lap when I was probably no more than four years old. The flowers surrounding me once again blended into an array of hues as I let my mind wander……
When I walked inside the front door something didn’t seem right. The feeling of sorrow overwhelmed the house. It was so thick I could literally feel it in the air. Everyone was motionless. They were sulking;I was befuddled. The most energetic people in the world, doing absolutely nothing. I repeatedly asked them what was wrong. After an hour or so, my dad pulled me aside. He said that my Aunt Feli had passed away last night. My mind went for a loop, I was so confused. I thought that he was joking, so I replied “You’re lying, don’t mess with me like that.” and punched his shoulder softly while I chuckled. My dad quickly started tearing up and said, “There...
I slowly opened the front door -- the same old creak echoed its way throughout the old house, announcing my arrival just seconds before I called out, "Grandma!" She appeared around the corner with the normal spring in her steps. Her small but round 5'1" frame scurried up to greet me with a big hug and an exclamation of, "Oh, how good to see you." It was her eighty-fifth birthday today, an amazing feat to me, just part of everyday life to her. The familiar mix of Estee Lauder and old lotion wafted in my direction as she pulled away to "admire how much I've grown." I stopped growing eight years ago, but really, it wasn't worth pointing this fact out. The house, too, smelled the same as it's ever smelled, I imagine, even when my father and his brothers grew up here more than forty years ago -- musty smoke and apple pie blended with the aroma of chocolate chip cookies. The former was my grandfather's contribution, whose habit took him away from us nearly five years ago; the latter, of course, comes from the delectable delights from my grandmother's kitchen. Everything was just as it should be.
Through out life people go through so many hardships. Whether it be good or bad there is always something that comes out of the situation. One of the most exciting but yet scariest events would be graduation. For a lot of people, graduating from high school is a goal. It takes a lot of time and effort to achieve that goal. In the long run, it opens a lot of opportunities for people to succeed. Graduation is the end of high school, and the beginning to life.
The moment we stepped foot into the hospital, I could hear my aunt telling my mother that “he is in a better place now”. At that moment, something had already told me that my dad was deceased; it was like I could feel it or something. I felt the chills that all of a sudden came on my arms. As my mother and grandmother were both holding my hand, they took me into this small room. The walls were white, and it had a table with four tissue boxes sitting on the top. My other grandmother was there, and so were my two aunts, my uncles, and
My high school graduation was one of the saddest moments of my life. Although I was excited about graduating, I did not know what I was going to do with the rest of my life. In Maya Angelou’s “Graduation,” Angelou was excited and proud of all that she had accomplished. In Flannery O’Connor’s “A Late Encounter With the Enemy,” Sally Poker Sash was proud that she was finally graduating and just wanted to show that off to all the “upstarts”. In the two readings the pupils are contrasting in a few different areas, and a couple of those areas are in pride and feelings that their families have being involved in the graduation.
... thought that maybe we won’t be friends or even know each other in the future. Unexpectedly, we all had these feelings of fondness for a place we a come to despise and couldn’t wait to leave. Why would that happen to us? We all realized that in this moment we’re growing up but are far from “grown up.” Suddenly, there is a flash of light and in that moment I knew that the three of us would be separated for the rest of the day, maybe our lives. The flash brought everything back. It gave us a reason to go back into the hallway and meaninglessly chat with our friends. After we left that room we were still sharing a moment together but in a different sort of way. The picture was there and we had superficial thoughts but the graduation was so much more. It marked a major time in our lives and sent us off into the future. No longer were we the next generation because we were being sent off into the grown up world. Would we all still be appreciated? How is the world going to receive three naive girls who don’t know anything? All these questions were to be asked and to be forgotten because we got caught up in the moment. The picture marks that time in our past and an important time it was.
There was no lawn, but there were four flower planters. The house was painted all white, with the exception of the front door that was painted light green. My grandfather was still young, strong, and full of life, he always had time to play with his grandchildren. Every Sunday he would take us to the park, would buy us ice cream, and take us to Sunday mass. On the day when this picture was taken, we were celebrating my 10th birthday, and I was dancing with my grandfather. I cannot remember the song, but I do remember what he told me while dancing slowly. He said “My little girl” how he used to call me,” in five years you won’t be a little girl, you will become a young lady.” At that moment I could not understand what he meant, but in my mind I was saying “grandpa I will always be your little girl.” While dancing, he made me a promise, “My little girl on your 15th birthday, I will dance the first song with you.” Who would know that he was going to die on my 15th birthday year, he passed away on June 21th, 1987 on Father’s Day. He left me with so many beautiful memories, but the most important was my first dance on my 10th birthday. On the night before my 15th birthday, I went to bed around 10 p.m. I was feeling depressed, because I was only thinking of the promise that my grandfather had made in the past. A promise that in my mind was not going to
It was a maddening rush, that crisp fall morning, but we were finally ready to go. I was supposed to be at State College at 10:00 for the tour, and it was already eight. My parents hurriedly loaded their luggage into the van as I rushed around the house gathering last minute necessities. I dashed downstairs to my room and gathered my coat and my duffel bag, and glanced at my dresser making sure I was leaving nothing behind and all the rush seemed to disappear. I stood there as if in a trance just remembering all the stories behind the objects and clutter accumulated on it. I began to think back to all the good times I have had with my family and friends each moment represented by a different and somewhat odd object.