Personal Narrative: Bird After The Storm

Bird after the Storm
Between the ages of 2 and 6, I can recall living in shelters and moving constantly. Ironically, between the ages of 2 and 6, I can also remember being happy. I never expected too much out of my situation, but I knew that I was deeply loved. Between the ages of 7 and 10, I was placed in the foster care system. My mother believed the system was a better option for my siblings and I. Within that three to four-year span, I cannot recall one moment of feeling like I belonged. I learned to be complacent with not expecting more out of my life. While in the system, I became a quiet and an extremely emotional child. When I look back at where I came from, the obvious path in careers for me to choose was to become a social worker. I did not want my past experiences to limit how I saw myself, and what I could accomplish. I wanted to use my past as a way to better influence children experiencing the same pain as I did. This desire later directed me towards child psychology.

Looking back at everything I've gone through, I developed a strong interest in the mental and emotional development of children.

Around the time I was in 10th grade, I came across notes that my previous social workers wrote about me. One statement that every report had in common was “appears to be angry.” Reading this hurt on many levels because I never thought I was an angry child. Granted I experienced feelings of loneliness and alienation; however, that did not make me angry. This made me feel labeled and misunderstood. This experience pushed me towards child psychology because I needed a way to better understand the past me, and children still in the foster care system, who believe in and succumb to

labels.
Child psychologists are experts at understanding the mental, social, and emotional problems of children. Most child psychologists work individually with children, providing therapy, diagnosis, and counseling. Child psychology, rather than social work, allows me to understand how children think, and why they behave the way they do. I did not want to apply myself towards a certain occupation and be stuck in a situation where I alienated a child, or could not identify certain issues. For me, the best way to avoid that probability is to dedicate myself to the science of knowing what makes children tick. Child psychology gives me this opportunity.
Rose Kennedy once said, “Birds sing after a storm. Why Shouldn't people feel as free to delight in whatever sunlight remains to them?”. When I first came across this quote, I was 11. I was watching an episode of Criminal Minds. Now that I am older, I realize that the younger me; so used to being mislabeled and misunderstood, was the opposite of this quote. I refused to see any “light” that surrounded me. I was so afraid that any expectations that I had would misguide me. So, I lowered my expectations and allowed myself to fall victim to misinterpretations, and labels. Later on, I realized that there were many children that felt this way. I came to the realization that child psychology can help me steer them towards a more positive outlook on life.
An important part of being a child psychologists