Personal Narrative: Don T Judge A Book By Its Cover

Georzianna Browne
Essay #1 : Categorize

Everyday someone in this world is being categorized by their looks, actions, behavior, etc. Over the past years I have been categorized in many ways. Due to the way I presented myself and the way I spoke, many others made assumptions of who I was. I was once told “Classy women don’t wear belly shirts, short skirts, or tight clothes”, so people assumed I was “Trashy”. Have you ever heard of “Don’t Judge a Book by its Cover”? People judged me based on what I looked like, and the actions that I made. People didn’t know how I actually was because they didn’t bother to get to know me, they based me off their assumptions and characteristics. I will

tell everyone “Don’t make assumptions about anyone”, you don’t know nothing about someone until you actually speak get to know them. I can honestly say being categorized has changed the way I looked at people as well as presented myself, as well as benefited me in several ways , It was a truly a life lesson, it had a great impact on my life. It was a hard journey, but I didn't let it break me, it made me whom i am today. I looked at it as help, i had to learn some way and i learned by being categorized.
The characteristics that placed me in the “ Trashy” category was they way i dressed, talked, and acted. I would wear tight clothes, belly shirts, short skirts, and mini shorts. I had an very non-chalant attitude, I pretended like I didn't care about what people thought of me. I was always calm about a situation, never reacted all viciously to someone. Although, I did care about what people said just never showed it. I felt like if I would've showed that i cared , people would’ve took advantage of me. When I talked I always used slang, sometimes I would say foul words which led people to think I was a “hoodrat”, as people would say, I would get called that so many times in High School it was ridiculous. Also, my tattoos and piercings people would think I was “ghetto”, But, I wasn’t I loved tattoos , and piercings, I used my tattoos of a way of expressing myself, but no one realized that until I explained to them how important my tattoos was, and what they stood for, For example my lower stomach tattoo says “live life like there’s no tomorrow” beneath my surgery scars, because when I found out i had appendicitis and needed to get surgery. I felt like I wasn’t going to get the chance to see another day but, I did. So, I got that tattoo next to my scars. Yet, I wasn’t just talking, and acting the way i acted for no reason, it was a reason behind it,
I grew up in a household with an older sister, and brother. The way I talked was because of my brother and sister. They was always using slang, curse words, etc, So, after hearing it so much I grew on to it, repeated what i heard, and so on. They were who I had looked up too back then. I would see my sister dress up, and then I started dressing up like her. I seen other girls at school dress up like her so, I thought that was the new style. So, I tried to fit in, These assumptions made e change a lot.
The impact of being associated with several categories, made me think differently of plenty of things, I had a completely different outlook on things.

People constantly talking about me, started eventually bothering me, I felt like I was trying to fit in somewhere I actually didn’t fit in. I totally understood why people thought of me the way they did, I didn’t present myself like a lady, I was 14-17 acting like I was 25, which was around my relatives ages. I was hurt sometimes when people called me names, I felt like the world was against me, People was so wrong about me, I wasn’t a “hoodrat”, or “trashy”, or anything else. I was still a virgin, I didn’t have boyfriends, or anything else. I was always worrying about school. I was top of my classes, I was smart, outgoing, enthusiastic, etc. But, no one seen that side of me but the people I had class with, Everyone else was was making assumptions of me based on what I looked like, the way I acted, and the way I presented myself, I always responded to these assumptions by ignoring them, but overtime it started bothering me too much where I actually sat and thought about what I was doing, and how I could change the way people thought of me, Once, I did my life did a complete turn

around.
Being categorized benefited me in several ways. I was no longer focused on trying to fit in somewhere I didn’t belong, I changed the way i dressed, and started dressing appropriately. Many people started surrounding themselves around me. I grew many friends. I changed the way I talked to people, I changed the way I presented myself. Now, I made sure I wore clothing that wasn’t so short, or too showy. I wore clothes that I felt like I would be able to still wear in a professional environment. No one said bad things about me anymore. I went from “hoodrat” to “young lady”, or “classy”, as they would say, I realized that I gained more attention this way, not only from boys but girls too. I would have so many people trying to make conversation with me, I started feeling myself, But, also it made me think about the way others felt, other people that’s in my position or once was, It made me make sure that i never make assumptions of anyone because I don’t know about anyone until I actually get to know them first. More so, I learned a lot being categorized as a “hoodrat”. A lesson i learned, and i want you to learn is “They way you present yourself, act, is how others will try to assume who your are, and what you do”. If you present yourself in a good way, others will think of you in a good way. If you present yourself in a bad way, that’s when people will make bad assumptions, even if they’re wrong or right. However you shouldn’t just make assumptions about someone, you should get to know them first,
To conclude, being categorized can either make you or break you, People be careful on how you present yourself to the world, Although, the assumptions were completely wrong about me, I still learned and understood why the way others thought of me the way they did, It maybe hard to overcome certain obstacles, such as this. Be yourself at all times, never try to fit in. It won’t always be as easy to get out of some positions, sometimes it can be too late, So, think before you do anything, Some may not show they are hurting, some may show it, either way don’t do it, However, don’t assume on something you know nothing about. You can benefit/not benefit from it, either way as I said before you can either let it make you or break you.