Growing Up In A Small Town Essay

617 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Achieving an academic success

“ I was from a small town, and nobody really expects you to leave, especially before you graduate, that just doesn’t happen.” (Taylor Swift) Hattiesburg, Mississippi, a city in the most poverty stricken states, ranked number 51. 44% of the population lives below poverty level, that is almost half of the total population. The median salary being 16,000, you’re lucky if you make more than that. The graduation rate from high school is at 76%. Higher education attainment is at a shockingly low 32.1%. My mother and I made it our mission to not be another disappointment growing up in the small town. I knew at a young age that the city I was in was somewhere that I could not stay. I wanted to be successful, I wanted to be able to experience new things, be able to prosper in my field of work. I couldn’t do that in Hattiesburg. There was no room to …show more content…

I knew I had to make it. The moment we moved was the moment I knew I couldn’t give up no matter how hard it got or how much I missed home. My mom always kept encouraging me even when I would go through stages where I would miss home so much being that I had absolutely no family or friends in Houston. Giving up was never an option in our family, whatever mission you start you don’t give up until you accomplish it and you always know that everyone in the family is 2 steps behind you in everything you do. When we actually got out of there everyone was so happy for us, even if they couldn’t leave yet. I knew to get where I needed to be I had to be dedicated I didn’t care what I thought I couldn’t do. I didn’t care if I wasn’t the best student in math or the best student in physics. I knew that I was always putting my best foot forward and if I didn’t do my best I always had an opportunity to do better. Where I grew up created a drive deep inside me to always be the best that I can be, it taught me that everyone can’t be that one superstar in the classroom but you can work as hard as you can to get

Show More
Related

  • Danielle Paquette's Article: Is Education The Cure To Poverty

    735 Words  | 2 Pages

    It’s considered a rarity now days to walk down a major city street and not come across a single person who is fighting to survive poverty. The constant question is why don’t they go get help, or what did they do to become like this? The question that should be asked is how will America fix this? Over the past year, Americans who completed high school earned fifteen point five percent more per hour than that of dropouts (Bernstein, Is Education the Cure to Poverty). According to Jared Bernstein, in his article “Is Education the Cure to Poverty”, he argues that not only do the poor need to receive a higher education, but to also maximize their skill levels to fill in where work is needed (Is Education the Cure to Poverty). Counter to Bernstein’s argument Robert Reich expresses that instead of attempting to achieve a higher education, high school seniors need to find another way into the American middle class. Reich goes on to say “the emerging economy will need platoons of technicians able to install, service, and repair all the high-tech machinery filling up hospitals, offices, and factories” (Reich, Why College Isn’t (and Shouldn’t Have to be) for Everyone). Danielle Paquette, though, offers an alternative view on higher education. Paquette gives view that it doesn’t matter on the person, rather it’s the type of school and amount of time in school that will determine a person’s

    Read More

  • Personal Narrative: Moving To Virginia

    1015 Words  | 3 Pages

    Many folks go their whole lives without having to move. For them it is easy; they know the same people, have loads of friends, and never have to move away from their families. As with me, I was in a different situation. I grew up my entire life, all eighteen years of it, in a small town called Yorktown, Virginia. In my attempt to reach out for a better life style, my girlfriend and I decided we were going to move to Shreveport, Louisiana. Through this course of action, I realized that not two places in this country are exactly alike. I struggled with things at first, but I found some comforts of home here as well.

    Read More

  • Coming Of Age In Mississippi Essay

    775 Words  | 2 Pages

    In Anne Moody’s book Coming of Age In Mississippi, we are given a first hand look of what it was like growing up as an African-American in the south during the mid 20th century. Anne recalls many different obstacles in which she had to overcome- or at least stand up to. Many of the struggles Anne faces throughout her early life may not be out of the ordinary for this time, but how Anne chooses to deal with these issues is what truly defines her to be an extraordinary character of American history.

    Read More

  • Outline: Growing Up In A Neighborhood

    146 Words  | 1 Pages

    Thesis: Growing up in a certain neighborhood doesn’t have to determine where you go in life.

    Read More

  • Personal Narrative Essay: Growing Up In Hemet, California

    972 Words  | 2 Pages

    I grew up in Hemet, California in a neighborhood filled with friends that I grew up with. I remembered a lot about my home that I grew up in mostly because I remember details better than most people. I may remember details, but I love looking back on memories I had with my family and friends.

    Read More

  • Descriptive Essay: A Small Town Of Westfield

    1000 Words  | 2 Pages

    Nestled deep within the Berkshire Mountains rests the small town of Westfield, Massachusetts. Every morning, a light, tepid fog settles among the quiet streets, devising a peaceful and calm atmosphere. Light winds gently brisk through the many oak trees, swaying the branches back and forth. From afar, the tall mountains border the limits of Westfield, forming a panorama of natural landscape. Fortunately, I was able to call the town of Westfield my home for many years. However, the town serves as more than a source of scenery. Westfield, Massachusetts, has profound personal importance as it portrays the majority of my lifetime. In fact, residing in Westfield has positively impacted my life as a result of the particular climate, historic motif, and community entrenched within the town.

    Read More

  • Childhood Essay

    704 Words  | 2 Pages

    What is childhood? To some its the upbringing and quality of life given to the child within the first several years of the child's life. In its simplest form, childhood is classified as the age span which ranges from birth to adolescence. During those years of childhood, most children go through various different physical and cognitive changes. According to the famous cognitive developmental theorist Jean Piaget, in psychology, childhood consists of four separate stages of development. Those stages are sensorimotor, pre-operational, concrete operational, and formal operational stages. The sensorimotor stage extends from both to when the child first starts to grasp the concept of language. In the pre-operational stage is when the child starts

    Read More

  • Growing Up In a Small Town

    675 Words  | 2 Pages

    Living and growing up in a small town is better than doing so in a big city.

    Read More

  • Legos

    968 Words  | 2 Pages

    During these years my life was an old television with only three channels: home, school and church; each one being similar to the other with little distinction. Even though my life seemed tedious at times, I learned how to focus, pray and never to give up. In hindsight, I believe my parents raise me in this manner out of fear. I did not grow up in the best of neighborhoods, and my older brother was incarcerated while I was growing up, so I can understand their apprehension. Nevertheless, I had a strong moral foundation to enter the unknown know as college.

    Read More

  • My Neighborhood Essay

    855 Words  | 2 Pages

    There are various influences on everyone’s lives while growing up. I believe the greatest of these influences is the neighborhood you grew up in. I grew up in a quite large, welcoming neighborhood. While living in this neighborhood, I was outgoing and remarkably talkative. Making friends became second nature to me. Playing outdoors from sunrise to sundown playing sports or exploring the outdoors with my friends became a daily routine for me. I was outgoing, talkative, and active. I believe this is the result of the neighborhood I grew up in.

    Read More

  • The Importance of a College Education: Student Essay

    825 Words  | 2 Pages

    I knew that right after high-school, I would be on a new road to life. For me, college wasn’t a choice. Even though it was pushed on me by my family as I grew older, I knew myself that I wanted to be the one to help my family out and I was determined to be successful. I planned to be successful the same way that I did in high-school. By going to college, you will always have your education to fall back on no matter what i...

    Read More

  • Childhood Narrative Essay

    801 Words  | 2 Pages

    Childhood is a time when significant events can and will leave impressions on oneself. It is not out of the ordinary that a large event will at least somewhat shape the mind of a child whether they realize it or not. One event that may have altered me somewhat was when I had to move from my old abode of Baileyton, Tennessee to Morristown to live with my grandparents. This was the result of my mother’s eventual passing after a losing battle with Cancer. Experiencing the “real world” so early may have changed how I think about and come to certain conclusions. I do not think this change in my life was necessarily a negative one, as I got to experience a lot of new things that I may have never had the chance to do. Sure, I had to grow up a bit earlier than your usual child, but I also probably reached a stage of maturity before most.

    Read More

  • Descriptive Essay On A Small Town

    740 Words  | 2 Pages

    I’ve finally made it. When you first land here the immediate difference is all around you whizzing around you creating a sense of life. It 's a sense that you rarely have in a small town it 's bigger I can’t quite obtain a hold of it. It moves fast all through the night and during the day. It peaks in all of my senses to create a brand new sense of the life of the city.

    Read More

  • My Childhood Home Essay

    742 Words  | 2 Pages

    There is only one place in this world I would go to find the meaning of life, my childhood home. In my memories, that house has always been my sanctuary. Safety brings a touch of tranquility, free of twisted negativity that would clear the way of finding the meaning of my life. My house opens a door to a whirlwind of deep love for everything it stands for and distaste for the way it looks. When you 're living in an unseemly house, surrounded by people who thinks its an eyesore, was when I learned the superficiality of the people around me. That house became my heaven as well as, my hell. I was caught between my appreciation for my own home and the approval of others, but as I grew up I found out what I should treasure more is the simple joys of life.

    Read More

  • Freshman Social Life Essay

    1025 Words  | 3 Pages

    My freshman experience was by far the longest and most difficult time in the four years I spent at American Heritage High School. I did not know one person in my entire high school when I got there so it was a difficult task to make friends. The first few weeks in high school I was so miserable. The hardest time of freshman year was probably overhearing other students I went to school with talking about an amazing party they went too on the first weekend of high school. This was extremely tough for me considering that I was not invited to this party and that weekend, I had just stayed home and watched a movie. During my freshman year there were certain activities designed to help new students make friends. I went to

    Read More

More about Growing Up In A Small Town Essay

Open Document