Have you ever felt that you had two versions of yourself, well I do. I have a couple versions I’m going to share with you, because a lot of people doesn’t know my story like they think they do. Some people judge me on where I come from or my race, also when my anger takes over me I just don’t know how to handle to people will refer to me as “ghetto”. I believe everyone has a story and shouldn’t be judged on what they’ve been through or where they come from. I’m not understood sometimes, and when I’m not understood I just want to be left alone, and when I’m not left alone my anger tends to take over a side of me that no one is really used to. That leads to people judging me and calling me a “ghetto kid from the hood”. Well that’s not the kind …show more content…
When I’m angry and have a lot on my mind, the first place I think of is the gym. It helps me release all the bad energy away from my mind and focus on the good, just holding a basketball is so comfortable to me. Some may say that I have some great dribbling skills which I think I was blessed with as a talent. When I first became interested into basketball is when I saw this clip of N.B.A. player named Kevin Durant. He’s about 6’10 and he could do everything in the book, dunk, shoot, etc. He also had some dribbling but that was only because of his height. So I thought I could do everything that he did but it was going to take a lot of hard work, time, effort, and dedication, because until this day forward I am still living with his quote “Hard work beats talent, when talent fails to work hard.” So when I found out that I had a great dribbling ability I started to work hard as I can on that one skill I had which was dribbling a basketball thinking that, that was going to help me win games and become known around the city. As I met more and more people they all said the same thing in order to be a great player you had to know how to shoot, be both handed, and have a great attitude, I had neither of them. My goal was crossing someone up and making them fall, but if you didn’t complete the play by making the shot the move meant nothing. So I would get really angry when I didn't make the shot and people would say I
Starting my freshman year at County High School, I played basketball and loved every minute of it. I wouldn’t be conceited enough to say I was good, but God did bless me with the talent to play. My life revolved around the sport of basketball; some would say I slept, ate, and breathed every part of it. I spent all my time training and practicing to make myself a more dedicated athlete. This dedication not only helped me as a player, but also molded me into the person I am today. It somehow helped to prepare me for what defeat I would face with back surgery in the future.
Everyone wants to get better at something, but some want it more than others. In “How to Transform an Everyday, Ordinary Hoop Court into a Place of Higher Learning and You at the Podium”, the narrator wants to get better at basketball, so he wakes up everyday at 4:30 to go with his dad to his work. Everyday, the narrator would wait 3 hours in his dad’s car until the gym opened, only to sit on the bench and watch the other men play basketball. Finally, one of the best players, Dante, tells the narrator he can play but he’ll get “smoked”. However, the narrator proved him wrong. The narrator learns that if you persevere, work hard, and have confidence, your dreams may come true. In How to Transform an Everyday, Ordinary Hoop Court into a Place
Who I think I am? I’m not exactly sure who I think I am or how to describe who I think I am. I tend to act differently around certain people. Constantly changing to try to seek approval. Constantly in fear of accidentally doing something wrong; that I might say something wrong and all my friends will abandon me or leave me for someone better. I think this fear came from when my best friend was taken from me. I had known her since preschool, but she had met another girl and she stopped talking to me completely. I’m in constant fear that this will happen to me again, so I struggle to be accepted. I don’t want to be forgotten again.
Within my fifteen and a half years of living, I have experienced many heart wrenching moments that have changed who I am, so many that I stopped trying to keep count long ago. Like most teenagers, the past couple of years have been some of the most confusing, hectic years of my life. I'm at that age I'm trying to figure out who I am, as well as who I want to become. As indecisive as I am, I will more than likely change my mind a time or two, but right now at this very moment, I've finally come to terms with who I really am, and what I would like to do for the rest of my life.
These past few days, I learned a lot about myself. One of the things I learned about myself is that I am a, Auditory learner. I didn’t agree at at first and after I read it, I said to myself that ‘’That is totally me’’.It said that as a, auditory learner is a person who listens to ideas and loves to tell jokes and I often like to talk to myself. I have trouble writing, and that was one of my goals for this year to become a better writer. I don’t really read body language because I like to express myself a lot and that is what makes me a better learner in my own way. I am very social, I always come to school with something on my mind that I need to do or fix and I have problems of my own. I guess that’s not very personal because everyone
Lights, camera, action. The spotlight gleams down on me. What do I say? Sure, my blackness typecasts me as aggressively outspoken, even though my occasional moments of shyness and social awkwardness prevents me from navigating within this narrative. A common rhetorical tactic that is upheld in the black community is the premise that young girls should be “seen, and not heard.” This narrative was heavily consumed in my household, which brew me to believe that my voice was trivial compared to my male counterparts. The Sapphire archetype of anger and the Jezebel archetype of sexuality failed to align with my shy persona. At a young age, I developed an inferiority complex. This is one of the effects of teaching young girls to keep quiet.
Growing up, I was extremely timid. I kept to myself never was into a girl’s night out. I greatly disliked makeup, and my clothes had to be loose fitted and my hair always a mess. My friends consisted of mainly boys, so I was just like one of them. Girls always seemed so into their makeup, and fixing their hair so there wasn’t a strand out of place, or talking about their boyfriends or guys they thought were so cute. Nope, that wasn’t me. I could no longer pretend to be someone I’m not. I’m someone who has an interest for women and this has greatly shaped my identity.
There are many things that have molded me into the person I am today such as being born into a family with four children. With three siblings, I have been forced to be able to work out problems from stealing each other’s toys to having to rush to the emergency room to get stiches because my brother chased me around the house and I tripped. My mother, father, brother, and two sisters were all born in Pennsylvania and I am the odd ball and I was born in Adrian, Michigan. From when I was a child I always loved being involved with sports because of my competitive nature. I grew up playing soccer and having success with that but then my love changed and I began playing lacrosse and football. I started playing lacrosse in middle school and played
Just the fact that difference is bad scary maybe and people don’t like change. But you should never be ashamed of where you come from or how you were raised, the things you can’t control, because the older you get the more you are going to wish you didn’t care what people thought of you an lived your life the way you
When you look at a basketball what do you see? Most would see an orange, sphere, shaped rubber ball. There are black lines and real leather. If you look closer, you would even see the size of the ball in which you are playing with. A basketball could be just a toy for many, or even represent a release for others, but for me, it means a lot more. A basketball represents my blood, sweat, tears, passion, sacrifice, and most of all, a sense of belonging, like a family. At this moment in my life, there are only three things I devote my life to- family, friends, and basketball. Basketball has shaped my life probably more than anything else. Basketball has instilled in me a vicious will to achieve and embrace my ambitions instead of fearing them. Basketball gave me an open opportunity to try something new. New opportunities and experiences are not such a big deal anymore. From academics to personal matters, the lessons that I have learned from basketball has impacted my life.
It was almost like I was stuck in this box with no way out. I was afraid I was going to obtain a title because of where I was coming from. My first day of school was the worst day of my life. I came in through the doors and I could see people immediately whispering. My skin color, my accent and my personality attached me to being the Brazilian girl. Not that it isn’t true, but why can’t I just be described as me. I couldn’t understand that judgement coming from everyone around me. But somehow I knew that by going to a class with all American kids would be this way. In that same day, we had a group discussion. We were expected to introduce ourselves and say one interesting fact about our lives. I felt devastated about what to say or how I would control my facial expressions. Fortunately, everything went well and I could breathe smoother. Suddenly, a girl in the back asked me how it was like to come from a country where you couldn’t go outside because you would be robbed. I looked at her and said: “I don’t know; why don’t you tell me.” I was afraid to say anything else thinking about her response. Indeed, she started saying how she didn’t expect me to be able to have nice clothes, even proper manners, because I lived in a small rural city. Eventually, I explained to her that life isn't based on just misleading assumptions. Defining someone isn’t based on what you
“Life is like a basketball, it bounces up and down.” I love basketball. I feel affection for the taste of victory, when you win a game. However, I also find losing a worthwhile experience. I worship the feeling where you score a point. It’s slow motion at first, as you gaze at the shot you’ve made, wondering if it is going to manage. Then the taste of your salty sweat and the sound of your pounding heart are back in action. *Swoosh* the ball rapidly swirls into the hoop and falls through the net. It is so stunning, and so breath-taking. “Beautiful shot! BEAUTIFUL!” the coach would yell. Everyone would give a little cheer, and I would smile and look down. I am proud to make the shot, but not cocky about it. It’s for the team, teamwork… I would think in my head. Afterwards, I would be focusing on how to get my head completely into the game, that’s how addicting it is.
Saint Augustine once said, “Lord let me know myself, let me know you.” This simple statement is often referred to as “double knowledge” and is the foundation for growth and development. Like many, I believe that in order for us to strengthen our relationship with God, we must first know ourselves better. The more we are able to understand ourselves-our confidential thoughts, hidden sins, and disordered desires- the more we are able to recognize our need for God’s grace. Many times it is those closest to us who help to aid us in this process. Personally, I found help in my closest friend, Madie.
Because of the fight between being introverted yet agreeable, I have developed a close minded personality. I dislike change, and I am afraid to try new things. This further explains why I would rather be at home in a familiar setting rather than out with a large group at an unfamiliar place. I do not know what to expect, thus new things are prone to happen. I resist new ideas from anything big or small. An example of all of these traits combined is my inability to drive in a new direction once I have been going that route, even if it may take way longer because of incoming traffic I will encounter. Although I have a GPS to get me though, I am afraid of ending up in the wrong area at the wrong time and not being able to get out of the situation
I am sentimental, out-going, indecisive, understanding, curious, naive, lazy, and young. I want to be ... , well a lot of things, and growing is discovering what they are. I feel people cannot see the potential within, although there is no one to blame but myself. I look to others for approval instead of to myself. I aim to please; it leads to approval. I don’t like to discuss my faults; I pity myself.