Personal Narrative: My Name

Your name is who you are; it’s the essence of your being. You and your name will go through thick and thin, young and old, and life and death together. You two are forever inseparable, like brother and sister, white on rice, or a fat boy and triple chocolate cake. My name happens to be Mykel. To many people I encounter in life, phonetically pronounce my name as “Michael,” “Mukal,” or even “Mah-Kawyll” by my Southern eleventh grade AP English teacher, Ms. Clawson, who always butchered my name with different pronunciations for the first two months of the quarter, and somehow managed to make it sound similar to an imitation crow call by an amateur bird caller. “Mykel” has Hebrew, as well as African roots. In Hebrew, my name translates to “who

Although it may seem as if the young people of today were not raised with the same morals and values that their elders were raised upon, I can assure you that I had those same old-fashioned virtues instilled within me. The reason I am the respectful person I am today is because of the way my parents raised me. I still hold the door open for anyone who might be walking through, I refrain from cursing in front of adults, I make sure I am on the outside of the sidewalk when I am walking with a woman, and I say “please” and “thank you” habitually. I treat everyone with the same level of respect, from the principal to the custodians, and everyone else in-between. The Y stands for youthfulness. Although I am mature and have retained the old-fashioned values of the generations before me, I still take advantage of my youthfulness, the time that I have in high school and my potential to grow as an

My ability to be empathetic has allowed me to be an open and well-rounded person that is able to listen to someone who may have an opinion that differs from my own and understand their perspective on a fair and comprehensive level. It is important that you are able to listen to someone you may not agree with without interrupting and learn new that you may have never considered before, it shows maturity and that you have great communication skills. Last, but not least, the letter L. The letter L stands for “lateral thinker.” I am someone who can add a unique element to Hampton University. Besides my devilishly good looks, I can contribute my community-oriented personality, my creative and unorthodox style of thinking, my progressive and innovative ideas, and my desire to come into Hampton University with an open mind and a willingness to learn more about myself, my peers, and community around me. I think I truly embody what Hampton University is looking in for an applicant and potential