rachgreene
Oct 1, 2014
Writing Feedback / Thankfully my obstacle was a shared one and I had the support of my family to help me get through it [2]
I'm in the process of writing this but i don't know how to finish it and i think the intro kinda sucks. so basically i'm stuck and any suggestions would be much appreciated
In life, everyone faces a challenging obstacle at least once, some let it get the best of them and others find a way to overcome the problemThankfully my obstacle was a shared one and I had the support of my family to help me get through it. When I was in 7th grade, my family and I had our home taken away and found ourselves homeless for a year. Although six years have passed by It seems It was a year of many different experiences, not all bad but they were experiences that changed my mentality for the best. Over the course of that year I learned to cope with the negativity life can throw at you and it is an experience that I let have a positive impact on my life.
I use to see people on the street and although I felt bad, the best I could do was a dollar and some change. I would have never thought that at age thirteen I would be the one hoping for that exact same thing. Shelters were always tough because it was on a first come first served basis and not having a car added to the difficulty of arriving early enough to get a spot. Aside from the difficulty of getting into shelters, I always disliked the lumpy mats and itchy fire blankets they handed out. I felt like I It was moments like those that made me crave the smell of downy on my soft blankets . Another thing I missed, was the home cooked meals because for that entire year my diet mainly consisted of cheap and greasy fast food. These reasons made being homeless bad but the worst of it all, was that kids at school didn't treat me normal and time and time again proved to be insensitive and cruel. The first couple of months at school were the hardest because most people tried to avoid me as if I had some infectious disease. I couldn't understand it I had known most of these people since I was in elementary and now they acted as if we had never met. I felt alone, that was until I realized that I didn't need people like that to be my friends actually I didn't want them to be my friends. I eventually did make friends that understood my living situation and made me feel a bit of normalcy in my life but that wasn't until halfway through the school year.
It was a difficult situation for me to deal with, especially because I knew I was too young to help. I mean what could I do? I wasn't even old enough to get job. I felt hopeless and useless, but surprisingly it was the small things that helped me through the moments when I worried about how long my situation would last. I finally reached a point were I had enough and chose to look at the good things in my life. As I mentioned earlier, it wasn't bad all the time and my favorite moments to look back on are the days my family and I spent at parks. Days at the park made me feel normal and no one could tell I was homeless, it we were just a family enjoying the day. I would read my book under a shady tree and I could pretend I was still in my backyard waiting for my mom to call me for lunch. The park was a nice way to spend my time but my favorite distraction from reality was reading. I could read a book and get so lost in it, I would forget all the bad feeling at least just for a bit. I read all kinds of books but one of my favorites was Ophelia by Lisa Klein. I loved reading so much that I decided to skip on a new pair of clothes so that I could buy a reading light.
Before being someone who had lost their home and belongings, the word homeless didn't mean much to me and it definitely didn't mean the same thing it does now. I am so grateful for that part of my life being over and as long as I have a home and good health I see myself as fortunate. Until this happened to me the worst thing I could have gone through was not getting the bike I wanted for Christmas or finding out I couldn't visit my cousins in the summer. Although it is something I would not want to relive again, I'm glad I went through it because it has a lot to do with the person I am today. This experience taught me that things can happen unexpectedly and that a bad situation cant be fixed by feeling sorry for yourself or crying about it. I cant say I never cried but what I can say is that doing that made me realize it is a waste of energy and time that would not change anything.
I'm in the process of writing this but i don't know how to finish it and i think the intro kinda sucks. so basically i'm stuck and any suggestions would be much appreciated
In life, everyone faces a challenging obstacle at least once, some let it get the best of them and others find a way to overcome the problemThankfully my obstacle was a shared one and I had the support of my family to help me get through it. When I was in 7th grade, my family and I had our home taken away and found ourselves homeless for a year. Although six years have passed by It seems It was a year of many different experiences, not all bad but they were experiences that changed my mentality for the best. Over the course of that year I learned to cope with the negativity life can throw at you and it is an experience that I let have a positive impact on my life.
I use to see people on the street and although I felt bad, the best I could do was a dollar and some change. I would have never thought that at age thirteen I would be the one hoping for that exact same thing. Shelters were always tough because it was on a first come first served basis and not having a car added to the difficulty of arriving early enough to get a spot. Aside from the difficulty of getting into shelters, I always disliked the lumpy mats and itchy fire blankets they handed out. I felt like I It was moments like those that made me crave the smell of downy on my soft blankets . Another thing I missed, was the home cooked meals because for that entire year my diet mainly consisted of cheap and greasy fast food. These reasons made being homeless bad but the worst of it all, was that kids at school didn't treat me normal and time and time again proved to be insensitive and cruel. The first couple of months at school were the hardest because most people tried to avoid me as if I had some infectious disease. I couldn't understand it I had known most of these people since I was in elementary and now they acted as if we had never met. I felt alone, that was until I realized that I didn't need people like that to be my friends actually I didn't want them to be my friends. I eventually did make friends that understood my living situation and made me feel a bit of normalcy in my life but that wasn't until halfway through the school year.
It was a difficult situation for me to deal with, especially because I knew I was too young to help. I mean what could I do? I wasn't even old enough to get job. I felt hopeless and useless, but surprisingly it was the small things that helped me through the moments when I worried about how long my situation would last. I finally reached a point were I had enough and chose to look at the good things in my life. As I mentioned earlier, it wasn't bad all the time and my favorite moments to look back on are the days my family and I spent at parks. Days at the park made me feel normal and no one could tell I was homeless, it we were just a family enjoying the day. I would read my book under a shady tree and I could pretend I was still in my backyard waiting for my mom to call me for lunch. The park was a nice way to spend my time but my favorite distraction from reality was reading. I could read a book and get so lost in it, I would forget all the bad feeling at least just for a bit. I read all kinds of books but one of my favorites was Ophelia by Lisa Klein. I loved reading so much that I decided to skip on a new pair of clothes so that I could buy a reading light.
Before being someone who had lost their home and belongings, the word homeless didn't mean much to me and it definitely didn't mean the same thing it does now. I am so grateful for that part of my life being over and as long as I have a home and good health I see myself as fortunate. Until this happened to me the worst thing I could have gone through was not getting the bike I wanted for Christmas or finding out I couldn't visit my cousins in the summer. Although it is something I would not want to relive again, I'm glad I went through it because it has a lot to do with the person I am today. This experience taught me that things can happen unexpectedly and that a bad situation cant be fixed by feeling sorry for yourself or crying about it. I cant say I never cried but what I can say is that doing that made me realize it is a waste of energy and time that would not change anything.