This quiet and quaint town known as Mt. Holly, NJ is where I grew up. Nestled in the outskirts of New Jersey’s capitol, is known for its small town charm and historic roots. Living here was the best years of my life. I grew up in a part of town that once housed the military families from Ft. Dix and McGuire Air Force Base, which is now known as Joint Base.
Kids are important because they grow up to be adults with power. They need to be taught how to make well-informed choices. We can teach them these things in children 's church. Teaching k-5th allowed me to help others grow, and to give back some of the lessons I was taught. My church also let me lead them in worship, allowing people feel closest to God during worship.
It’s June 16, 2016, and I’m in Eagle River. I’m thinking to myself, “Why am I here? I am not in the mood for this. This isn’t what I planned for. I should be walking through the competitor gates, not the gates for the stands and raffles.”
Whenever my mom has company at her house, guests always ask about the plaque that hangs in the living room on the wall. It reads Championship Mvp, 14-0 season, Jonesboro Wildcats. My mom always smiles and says, “Ask Markus about it.” I don’t mind telling people about the championship game. It is after all one of my fondest memories playing sports.
Over the summer I traveled to Tennessee to see my cousins. The day we arrived, we visited Lake Winnie, an amusement park with tons of rides with a water park. It was a joyful day. That day I went on the first roller coaster I 've ever been on. While walking nervously up the steps to get into line with my cousin, I felt the adrenaline rushing through my body, and I felt very anxious.
Golden light from a Texas sunset illuminating stark white fields of cotton, green and yellow tractors leisurely making their way down the middle of Main Street, and a community that will always support you are just a few things one might experience if you came to my hometown in rural Texas. Matador, Texas isn't just a dusty old town in the middle of nowhere, it is a town that no matter who you are or what you are trying to do, hard work is always required; it is where I grew up from the day I was born, spent lazy summer days reading and writing abstract stories without distractions of people, traffic, or even the ever-present cell phone, and where I learned about a whole other side of society, one where the community gathers together for anything
The community I grew up in central Texas celebrated my heritage, honored differences in culture, and fostered personal growth and self-discovery. My parents, with the strong work ethic they developed on their family’s farms in Ghana, encouraged my brother and me to work hard and find ways to use our skills to be of service to others, which wasn’t hard to do growing up in Austin with its many avenues to become involved and take care of the community, whether it was helping to direct families through the Trail of Lights at Zilker Park during the winter or raise money for educational programs for underprivileged kids in the area through working the concession stands at the University of Texas at Austin. It was this collaborative mindset that Austin
Several individuals from different ethnicities, races, and citizenships, compose a society. The United Sates allow us to have a close interaction with numerous individuals from diverse backgrounds. In my own case I have been able to interact with many incredible individuals from all over the world who come from extremely different backgrounds. I am a proud Mexican who cherishes respect towards diversity. Coming from a very suffered country I am able to understand not only what does it means to feel proud to be a Latino, but also I can feel acquainted with the pain and struggle that our community has to face every day.
Growing up in southwest Atlanta, Georgia, I have been surrounded by ‘black success’ instead of just ‘success’ for the duration of my life. The blacks in my area are equally as successful, if not more accomplished than, the non-blacks, but we are always titled separately and put into a captive box. The box we are held in told young girls that they should aspire to be athletes, cosmetologists, or plain unemployed. The same box told young men that they could only be considered “somebody” if they were able to catch a ball well. These are occupations we would ‘best be suited for’; these are occupations that perpetuate the box.
Getting down to Nebraska was harsh and the trail was dusty. The children like me had to take care of the animals. Jim, Antonia and myself became really good friends after living next door to each other for a while and we do everything together. When I work, I help my dad to plant and harvest crops and hunt for food. We planted and harvested corn, potatoes, pumpkin, wheat, peas, carrots and tomatoes.
There is such a place called Nashville in the state of Georgia! If I am not mistaken, there is a Nashville in every Southern state in honor of the Revolutionary War hero General Francis Nash . He was a native Virginian reared in North Carolina, who through his military service brought notoriety to the Nash name. If I am wrong about there being a Nashville in each Southern state, I know of at least two, my hometown, and some other place where they sing country music or something.
My home state is Texas, and a problem Texas faces is an overall mindset of systemic racism, sexism, and xenophobia. Texas is a very conservative state, thus many of the policies passed by our legislation are written at the expense of women and minorities. Although I might sound highly critical of our state government, I do not believe that these negative mindsets are deliberate attempts to put others down, I feel that it is simply an ignorance to the issues women and minorities face, and a lack of empathy. Ignorance is easily countered by thorough education. The easiest way to solve this is for us constituents of these politicians, to bring the issues that affect us to the forefront.
The summer of 2016 my family and I took a road trip to Colorado. Colorado reminded me a lot of Minnesota but on a big Mountain. There are river valleys that are 1,250 feet deep to mountains that are 14,114 feet high. I climbed a mountain in Glenwood Canyon.
During July 19-22 of 2012, Twin Lakes, Wisconsin. It was a very hot day about 90 degrees. We were like in a middle of a hay field. I was with my best friends. There were trucks everywhere and a lot of adults and younger people drinking and dancing to country music.
I'm exploring various areas for retirement, which presently includes Raleigh/Durham, and possibly Asheville, for visits up to six months of the year. Hopefully, I will be lucky to meet acquaintances who are similar in age who are willing to connect without the need for a rushed relationship. I would like to settle down but I am realistic and will admit that I am careful. I am hopeful for a mature commitment in the future. An important aspect is flexibility as my lifestyle involves travel, which is unavoidable.