Freewrite - 10/10
Write from memory about a moment that defined you. Write about the moment you knew that you were not a kid anymore. Frame it as a story. This could be the first paragraph of what could become a longer work (as in Jazz or What Belongs to You) or a self-contained story (as in “The Mother”). Try to convey the story and its conflict(s) using one of the three modes discussed in the textbook: connection/disconnection, a power struggle, or a journey.
The minute I knew I wasn’t a kid anymore was when I started applying for college. College is a major step in life and leaving all your memories as a kid at home. That’s when I realized I was an adult now and had to make decisions for myself. I would describe this as a journey. The journey through the applications were long and I had a few stressful moments but I got past it. The main conflict was where I wanted to go and what I wanted to be. I ended up at a great school with great friends.
ReplyDeleteThe moment I realized I wasn’t a kid anymore was when I got my first job as nanny. last year during the summer I nannied a family of 3 girls every day of the week. I had to take them to there camps, sports practices, and activities. I had so much fun, but it was a lot of work. I worked from 8-4 every day and got super close to the kids. It made me feel like a mother even though I wasn’t.
ReplyDeleteThe first day of summer break was every seventh grader's dream. We were all planning what we were going to do that summer, dreaming about what eighth grade would be like. There's one boy that I remember specifically from that school year. He was scrawny, pale as a ghost, and had eyes like one thousand oceans combined into one. He was ordinary and looked just like all the other boys I had seen all year, but there was something distinctive about his face. He had a giant bruise right in the middle of his forehead from a suction cup he was playing around with earlier that day. That bruise wasn't there anymore, three days later at his funeral.
ReplyDeleteAbby Ford
Ellie terrazas
ReplyDeleteI knew I wasn't a kid anymore when I started looking into colleges. As senior year came to a close, all of my friends knew where they were going, had a list of things to buy before they went off to school, started writing notes to their families, began to pack up their rooms, I knew that I couldn't return back to my childhood. As summer was ending, the room that used to be filled with friends and pictures hanging on the walls was now empty and in transition to a craft room. No longer was I a child, being looked after in every aspect, but I was growing up and moving out for the first time.
ReplyDeleteTo play football in middle school it was just a game. However, once scouts came in from high-schools to come watch me play everything change. I would be able to leave school early to visit campus’s and eat free lunch, talk to the head coach and many more. I remember going to one campus in particular Saint Xavier, and climbing to the top of the bleachers. I remember saying to myself, “ I will play here one day.” Fast foward 4 years, and I won a state championship at Kroger Field under Saint Xavier.
ReplyDeleteAnthony Nguyen
The moment I realized I wasn't a kid anymore was when I saw my mom for who she was instead of what I had made her to be in my head. We were fighting and I just remember thinking that it was ridiculous and that although I was in high school, I felt like the more mature person. I also just felt like I was parenting her sometimes instead of the other way around. I love my mom but some of the treatment I got and still get made me grow up quickly. I feel more grown up because I'm trying to earn enough money to pay for my tuition so she doesn't hold stuff she pays for over me anymore.
ReplyDeleteTaylor Cooper^
DeleteThe moment i realized I wasn’t a kid anymore was when COVID hit, i was like the head of the house, making sure my mom was good when she was going through COVID symptoms and also the bond that we had during COVID. Also when i started applying for colleges and realizing that i was about to graduate and become an adult and go miles away from home. Even before, i realized how fast i was growing up and that i stopped being a kid even when i was supposed to be one.
ReplyDeleteThe conflict was what i was going to do after I turned 18, but then the journey started and i took everything one day at a time and almost 2 years later, it’s still going good.
DeleteThe moment I knew I was no longer a kid was when I drove alone for the first time. Instantly there were so many responsibilities at hand. I also had to learn to trust myself because behind the wheel you can not question your decisions. But there is also a sense of relief because I get to be alone, and me time is something I value greatly.
ReplyDeleteIt was already night when I got a text from a friend to come over to their house. A couple years ago, I know my parents would discourage me from going out when it is already midnight, so I am a bit nervous to go ask them if I could go. I really wanted to go hang out with my friends, so I got dressed, grabbed my keys, and headed toward the door. "Where are you going?" my dad asks. I look at him and say "Over to a friend's house, I am going to stay the nights." My dad shook his head and said to be careful. At this moment I realized I was old enough to make my own decisions and do not need their permission anymore. I can just tell them what I am doing, instead of asking them.
ReplyDeleteThe moment i knew i wasn’t a kid anymore was when I started college. It didn’t really hit me until the first week ended. I realized i was truly on my own. I wasn’t sad about it, either. Being a kid wasn’t fun, I have strict parents so I didn’t get to do much. My parents are still strict, but it’s a lot better now as a real adult. I have freedom.
ReplyDeleteI needed to get a job. I could drive now and was going out with my friends, so I needed money for when we would go out. My parents didn’t just give me money whenever I wanted. I had to pay for new clothes, food, gas, anything I went out and did with my friends. And now that everyone had the freedom of driving, we were going out more and more, so I needed a job. I realized then that once I started working I would for the rest of my life. It made me realize I’m not a kid anymore. I needed to start being responsible and saving money and preparing for my next step in life.
ReplyDeleteThe moment I’ve realized that my childhood was slipping away was when I got my first job. My parents never cared that I didn’t have a job, but I wanted to make some extra money on the side. I knew that my lifestyle wasn’t cheap and I felt guilty whenever they had to spend money on me, so I figured that at the age of sixteen, it was time for me to start applying for jobs. My brother was supporting me throughout the journey, but he was also stressing me out. He kept telling me that I need to find a job by September or else he would make me apply to jobs that I had no interest in. It took three weeks to settle down and get a job I enjoyed and it was at chick-fil-a. As I was working, I’ve realized how hard it was to get a job when I have no past experience and how my life is going to get much busier because now I have to balance school and work. It made me mature much faster because I had to make sure I have time for my friends, to do homework and make money for my spendings. Getting a job made me realize how time is precious and how it’s going to be easier for me in the future because I have gone through the struggle of applying for jobs and having a busy schedule in high school. College wasn’t going to a slap in the face because I’ve been here already.
ReplyDeleteThe moment I realized finally that I wasn't a kid anymore was actually this summer. Working 60+ hours a week managing two jobs and still at the same time managing a social life and responsibilities I had going on like getting stuff for my first apartment really overwhlemed. I had to do all this on my own without any help of parents. Once I moved into my apartment this fall I knew that it has been the biggest step in my life where I no know everything falls on me. If I dont pay my rent on me, or buy groceries, clean, work, and school all of it is my responsibility and no one elses. It has been difficult and I look back and think I wish I could be a kid again. But then theres days where I love doing life the way I am. I learn so much and I know that I am able to do it on my own and that makes me proud of myself.
ReplyDeleteThe moment I knew I wasn't a kid anymore was when my family dropped me off at college. I remember my parents driving away and I was so excited to finally be on mt own. After about a week when it all hit me, I was so upset because I realized I was grown up now and I won't ever be living at home with my sisters again. I was such a weird feeling knowing that I had moved away and I can't rely on mt parents as much as I used to anymore and from that point on I needed to figure out life on my own.
ReplyDeleteThe moment that I knew I wasn’t a kid anymore was when I started applying for college and my circle of friends got smaller. Usually in high school you have a really big group of friends because you all live in the Same town so everyone knows each other. I knew when I graduated and went off to college I would lose contact with a lot of those people. Well when I started applying for college I knew it was about time for me to be an adult. I left for college and about two weeks in a lot had changed (in a good way though). A lot o new memories were made and I had left all my memories as being a kid back at home. I ended up meeting better people at my school than people from my hometown. College Is a big stepping stone in life and I think slot of other people will realize that’s what really lets you know that you’re not a kid anymore.
ReplyDeleteThe moment I realized I was not a kid anymore was when my parents had left me at college. I had just realized that I would never really be at home with them 24/7 anymore. I was now on my own and living on my own. I am 7 hrs away from my house so I had no choice but to stay. I wasn't able to go home on the weekends like some other people could. I had to be on my own and start growing up.It was a new journey and a new start for me. I knew no one coming here. All of my friends went to the school near my house. I have no regrets for coming to a school so far away. I know that I am not a kid anymore and that it is time to grow up.
ReplyDeleteLeaving for college was a concrete moment that I knew I was no longer a kid. 4 am out the door of the home I wouldn't see again until Thanksgiving, saying goodbye to my bedroom where I laughed, cried, danced, and relaxed. Once it hit 3 pm I would no longer be living under my parents roof, no longer eating the food they cook or getting a ride from my older brother whenever I needed. I was now going to be on my own, in a new state, and surrounded by new people. The 6 hour drive was filled with sharing memories, tears, laughter, and singing our favorite songs. This was the last hurrah with my best friend, my mom, before I had to say goodbye for four months.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately my time of being a kid was cut very short. I was 10 days away from being 8 years old when I received the worst news of my life. I had been diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. As I heard the doctor say, “You aren’t going to be able to live the same life anymore,” that is when I knew I had to force myself to grow up. I couldn’t be the careless little kid running around, eating whatever is in sight. No. I had to be different.
ReplyDeleteThe moment when I realized I wasn't a kid anymore was when my mother passed away. I relied on her very heavily for a lot of things in my life and my dad never wanted me and my siblings to lean on him for anything. Which pushed me to be independent. I would describe this as a journey. Learning how to be more independent on how to live on my own without my mother.
ReplyDeleteThe summer going into middle school was a summer I could have never planned for. My parents decided to inform us that we were going to be moving to a new town. I am the oldest of three children and durning this time I felt this unforeseen pressure to grow up fast. Moving away was scary, but I had to be strong for my siblings, and yet at the same time I was still a kid. Durning the whole moving process I was experiencing a whirlwind of emotions feeling like I needed to be mature and not vulnerable, but at the same time I was leaving all of my best friends. I felt like I was loosing control over my life and I was only 13 years old.
ReplyDeleteThe moment that defined me as an adult and made me realize I was no longer a kid anymore, was very simple to most but major to me. This moment was the first time I got into my car in the University of Kentucky parking lot all alone and made the decision to drive five hours all the way home. I never once realized how grown up it would feel to travel for five complete hours by myself. I was in the driver seat and all the decisions of where to stop and get gas or where to eat, were my own decisions now. I was running on my own schedule and I got to be in control. Within these five hours, I grew up. For the first since leaving for college I was off on my own completely, no sorority sisters, no roommate, no teacher, just me. I felt empowered and mature to be on my own and I was ready for more independent adventures.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was given a car, I realized that I was not a kid anymore. I had been waiting for my sixteenth birthday for years. I had been practicing my driving skills with my mom for months and all I wanted to do was be able to drive a car and get my license. On the morning of my sixteenth birthday I woke up at 6 am and my mother drove me to the DMV. I passed my test with flying colors and ran out of the doors with my new license. It was my first license ever! I then signed up for driving lessons and drove with my mom in the car for 6 months until I got my restricted license and could drive alone. Once those 6 months had passed i felt pretty confident in my driving skills. The first morning that I drove myself to school and my mom didn’t was the morning i realized I had grown up. _Kate henderson
ReplyDeleteI knew I wasn’t a kid anymore my junior year of high school. I had always heard the saying “ Junior year is the hardest year.” They weren’t wrong. ACTs and SATs had to be studied and taken, Colleges emailing me, wanting to apply and go to there schools, and teachers already talking about life after high school. My conflict throughout that whole experience was I felt I wasn’t ready. Everything was happening so fast and I felt I couldn’t keep up. But it taught me something, life is going to be fast paced, but its your life. You have control over the things you need and want to accomplish.
ReplyDeleteThe moment that I knew that I was no longer a child is when I was alone for the first time. I had never fully been awake and alone until this day. My parents left me home alone for the first time. So much freedom, yet so much danger. My house was empty and so was I. This feeling did not last long because I quickly found a way to keep myself busy. I do this a lot when I feel alone. Just add things to my schedule to fill up my time. I was no longer a kid that day and have not gone back since. My parents also knew that I was no longer a kid since they let me stay home alone.
ReplyDeleteThe moment I knew I wasnt a kid anymore was when I finally graduated. I was able to enjoy my summer but then I knew that I had to get ready for college. I started applying for jobs, did orientation, and got my stuff ready to move out. It still feels like Im a kid sometimes, especially at work since Im still new. But then it also feels like Im an adult since I am actively working with new patients and people. And I cant do anything on weekends unless I call off from work but I dont mind it as much since I get more pay.
ReplyDeleteZoe Brewer
I was laying in my bed with my giant skull candy's and the music bumping, it was vibrating my bed frame the tunes were so loud. All of a sudden I got that feeling of someone talking or calling my name and I took off my headphones, I heard my dad and loud steps. The basement was freezing and jet black, I couldn’t see much at all, as if in a darkness storm, but I know my house like the back of my hand. I found my way to the basement stairs and slowly crawled up the stairs like a ninja, deathly silent and I peered my head up. There is a gap under the basement door about three, three and a half inches, so i can observe their shadows, where they are walking, etc. I found myself coming to realization that this was no regular argument between parents. My father had found out some things about what my step-mom had done with other people, which no spouse should ever do, and in the moment of hearing trust being broken and hearts being broken, I took it upon myself to be there for my father and to help him and my five other siblings get through the rough times ahead.
ReplyDeleteJourney in sense of having to grow up quickly for my siblings, but also through that journey we all became very close. A power struggle would be through me being so young because in mute being little there is not much i can truly do for My family, or it at least made me feel as if i could not do as much as I wanted to help.
DeleteI turned 18 four days after my high school graduation. There was so much going on between graduating, my birthday and preparing for college that my birthday was almost miserable. I realized that I was now legally an adult, I finished high school and I'm going to college in a few months. I had a job and paid for most of my own things and was so nervous for what the next year would look like. I was practically taking care of myself this past summer as I was almost never home except to sleep at night. The only restriction I had was my curfew but I had already gotten over the typical high school bad decision making tendencies and cared more about myself and my future then my social status or how much "fun" I was having to other people on social media. It was the first time that I felt like I was living life for me and not everyone else.
ReplyDeleteThe moment I knew I wasn't a kid anymore was when I didn't need to depend on anyone else for anything. When I got my license I didn't need to depend on my parents for a ride. When I got a job I didn't need to depend on my parents for money. Now that I'm at college I'm not depending on my parents for a home. I don't think there was an exact moment when I realized I wasn't a child anymore it was more so when I earned the responsibility of not being a child anymore.
ReplyDeleteBetty Lundal
ReplyDeleteThe moment I knew my days of being a child were over was my first day of my senior year. Applying to college and having every "last first" was something I dreamed about, but when it was there, was something I wish I wasn't experiencing. Something I wish I could pause in order to get my time back, and simply just slow down. Going into school knowing next year I won't be returning, won't be sitting in the front of the student section, won't have intimate relationships with people I see daily, and won't be living as a kid, wasn't something I was prepared for. Wasn't something I ever thought I could get used to. The change has shown me what it means to grow up and what it's like to not be a child. Although it's weird living alone, far from home, and being an adult, I've been able to come to a point in my life where I have been able to push myself and become the best version on myself possible. yes, I miss the times where my only worry was how long I could play after dinner, but I am glad to be at the point I am at today.
A major part of becoming an adult is making tough decisions. Over this past summer, I was faced with a difficult decision: going on a vacation with my friends or staying home and working at my internship. Although the decision was difficult, I decided to follow through with the internship. Watching my friends have a good time while I was stuck at an office was not fun. Making the decision to stick with my commitment was difficult, but it was the right one because it will benefit me more in the long run. The best part about sticking with the internship was that I was able to save a lot more money for college.
ReplyDeleteOne of the defining moments of my transition from childhood to adulthood was a long drive home from a vacation in the backseat of my parents' car when I was about to be 16 years old. As I was trying to fall asleep my parents got into a conversation about my getting my license, and with my eyes closed, they didn't realize that I was awake. I remember them talking about how different it would be once I could drive myself everywhere. My dad no longer needed to pick me up from school or drive me to soccer practice. The words I specifically remember him saying were, "She growing up now, and she doesn't need us for everything." These words hurt when I heard them, and they made me feel as though I had to do absolutely everything by myself now. In reality, I was just getting my license, but this was still a very eye-opening experience for me. It was set in stone that from 16 and on, I was only going to mature more and more. Though it was a scary feeling, I found comfort in knowing that my parents were prepared for it too.
ReplyDeleteThe first moment I realized I wasn't a kid anymore was probably the first day after I moved into my dorm my freshman year of college. I'm from Lexington, so seeing my parents and friends wasn't an issue, but when I realized I was truly living by myself and figuring out who I am outside of my life before that. It's not the most dramatic thing ever, but learning and figuring out who I am didn't all come at once, but I decided to take it day by day and reflect on my decisions to see if that's the person I wanted to become.
ReplyDeleteI never saw the house while it was on fire, only told the inside was full of thick black smoke. We weren't home, but we had been just minutes ago. No one told me what was going on, the tv showed us the election results, while my mom stood outside in the cold November air. My sister and I were tense, knowing something was wrong. Walking back into a soot covered house the smell would follow me wherever I went. Our kitchen looked melted, as if someone took a flame thrower to every appliance we had. Nothing I could do, nothing my parents could do, just a house covered in smoke, that would never be the same. A childhood home full of memories, will forever be changed. Even when we finally walked back into a smoke free house, none of us where the same people.
ReplyDeleteEvery sixteen year old's dream is to have their very own car...for me that was when I realized actually how independent having a car makes you. My mom told me I had to pay for my own gas, schedule my own inspections, and learn how to take care of my car. Right once you are behind the wheel it is a symbol of really how free you are, you can go anywhere! My mom cut back on the rules and curfew because she trusted me, and if I didn't keep in touch with her then my car was gone and I was grounded. I felt like a sixteen year old adult as I would drive with my friend down to my grandma's. A road trip all by yourself! I was nerve racking to say the least driving on the highway for seven long hours, but it was worth every minute to say the least, that feeling of adulting that every teenage has is something you miss as you slowly become and adult and look back on the times where now that is not a very big deal but to you at sixteen driving alone was the most important thing in someones life.
ReplyDeleteAs I stand in front of my grandmothers, fathers, aunts, and uncles closest friends and family, I glance down at my clammy hands. The paper before me, sits on the brown, wooden podium mocking me with the words I wrote the week before. I look, up glance around the room, and start to speak from memory. I talk about all the great times I had with her and what all she taught me. I quickly go back to my seat, and my dad takes the podium. He starts to speak, but eventually ends up squatting behind the podium to let out his tears of agony. In the next moment, I am up at the podium finishing his speech for him. Once he stands and composes himself, he goes to finish the rest of his eulogy. In that very moment, I realized that I am not a kid anymore. I also realized that we are all still "kids". Even when our mothers or grandmothers die, we are still kids who are all looking and receiveing help.
ReplyDeleteI recently only just realized that I am not a kid anymore. Of course there were little moments in my life that made me grow up a little, but I still liked to think that I was just a kid. I got a car...I started driving, I got a job... I started making money, I got a diploma... I left home. I knew that I had to grow up, but I did not think it would feel this weird. Being away from home has obviously given me freedom and independence, but now it is actually time to focus on getting a big girl job. I don't go home everyday to a home cooked meal, and no one asks me what I learned at school.
ReplyDeleteLife is full of interesting moments, but some stand out more than others and change who you are permanently. For myself, it was the first time I really experienced death. I was in fifth grade, and my grandpa had gone in for a routine surgery. He had more bone and joint problems than you could count. However, the nurse who was watching him while he was on anesthesia, did not do her job. He went to sleep and his breathing slowed. He was revived, but we all knew he wouldn't recover, and thus began a long story of my grandpa slowly fading away.
ReplyDeleteThe first time I truly realized I wasn't a kid anymore was when my grandma passed away. I got the phone call last January that she was in the hospital after she had her second stroke, along with a heart attack. They told me it was okay if I wasn't able to come home at that time. A few days later I got the call that I needed to come home. I drove home with my brother on January 12, the day before my birthday. She had passed away that day. The next day, I expected it to be such a good day because it was my birthday, but in reality, it was not a good day; In fact, I realized that as you grow up, things change and people are no longer with you. These types of things can really impact someone.
ReplyDelete“What is the biggest challenge you’ve ever faced?” As I was applying for colleges I had to write an essay to answer this question. I was stumped. Completely at a loss of words. It took me a while to realize that that question was my biggest challenge. Not just the question but applying and leaving for college all together. The entire process was a huge journey for me. Reading that prompt was when it really hit me that everything was about to change. That was when I realized I wasn’t a kid anymore and that what I wrote on that paper decided how far away I would be moving from everything I’d ever known.
ReplyDeleteI knew I wasn’t a kid anymore when I was treated as an adult by the University of Kentucky. Almost no 18 year old is well versed in contracts or financial obligations, and I suffered the consequences of making a “mistake”. When I didn’t get a dorm due to the overwhelming amount of students this year, I quickly leased an apartment. Soon after I canceled my housing contract. What I didn’t know was that this decision would cost me $4,000. I thought to myself, “This is entirely too much for something that isn’t entirely my fault. How could a rich university charge so much to someone who was practically a child months ago?” They can and they will. I have to be responsible for my actions as an adult, but it was the biggest reality check of my life.
ReplyDeleteI walked into the large building, by myself, not knowing where to go. A lady behind the desk pointed me to the back, where I walked down hesitantly. I had always wanted a debit card and my own bank account, but I didn’t know what to expect or what I would have to do. After a few minutes, I went to the back of the room and answered questions. It took what felt like years for the process to get done, much like how I’ve heard those older than me in my family complain about it. Once it was done, she handed me a packet and a smooth black card. This was my ticket to the rest of my life. I ran my fingers over the number enough times to make them smaller. I looked at my wallet, now with no cash but only a card, and felt for the first time like an adult.
ReplyDeleteWhat’s more liberating for a teenager than that first drive after getting there license? Ever since my sister started driving, I had been patiently waiting for my turn. I was sick of always having to bend my schedule around seeing if there was someone who could take me there and pick me up. I had always wanted one car, and the only one we could find was wrecked. So my dad and I had spent the last year and a half fixing it, and after it was fixed, practicing driving. That feeling of complete independence when I got in the car, and it was just me, I truly felt like I was a new person.
ReplyDeleteI was really hungry walking back to Jewell Hall and I was wanting to get something to eat. So I walked past my dorm to go get some Qdoba because I was craving a burrito. As I go to pay, my card was declined, I know I am not the first person in college to have this happen to me but me walking back that night on an empty stomach made me realize that it’s time to start being a grownup. I then ended up making a turkey sandwich in my dorm but it was that night that made me tell myself that absolutely nothing is given to you and that you must work for even the smallest things including a sandwich and that I should be spending my money on stupid things like video games and paying parking tickets. So now every time I don’t want to go to work, my classes, or anything that’s going to help me, I just think about me not having enough money for one single burrito at Qdoba. Every time I think about making a purchase like a video game, decorations, or certain clothes, I just think about if I really need to be spending my money on this.
ReplyDeleteA normal day at home, at least as normal as we could be. We were always the dysfunctional family who always found a way to function. It was summer and we were watching a movie, my siblings and I, probably a Disney movie. Out of the corner of my eye I notice a slight tremor from my three year old sister, I knew exactly what it meant. In the time it took me to understand what was happening, she began to shake violently. A seizure. She had them often. Although I was only ten, I had immense responsibility for my four younger siblings for most of my childhood, thanks to an absent mother and father. Taking care of them was normalcy. But I finally realized that I wasn't a child anymore, that I never really got to be a child, during this seizure. She stopped breathing. My brother began to cry. I began CPR while simultaneously calling 911, trying my hardest not to show my panic on my face, so as not to worry my other siblings. But oh how I was so worried that she wasn't going to live, and that I would have to be the one to break the news that I had failed. My grandmother, our sole provider, had just had a major surgery and was no help during this time. My sister was breathing, the ambulance arrived, and we made it to the hospital, her and I, in one piece. The doctor asked me "What medication is she on? What dosage? When exactly did these start?" And I said, I'm unsure, I'm only a child.
ReplyDelete“You need to get your shit together. Because honestly, I don’t know what in the hell you’re doing.”
ReplyDeleteMy principal, this person in authority that I had been conditioned to respect above all else, had decided to tell me off in the middle of a class exchange because of a decision I had made for Student Council as its acting president.
My initial reaction was shock. How could a professional, the leader of a school and supposed model of character and integrity say things like that to me? The next emotion was doubt. Had I really screwed up that badly? What did I do wrong? I’m just a kid.
That was it. That was the moment I realized I wasn’t a kid anymore because I wasn’t being held to the “kid” standards. I expected to measure up. By my principal, by my peers, by other adults in my life. Whether or not that was the right timing, it was in that moment, in that hallway, infuriated and filled with doubt that I knew I had grown up.
The moment I realized I wasn’t a kid anymore was my first day of stepping on campus. Before this time when I graduated high school nothing felt different, I still had all of my friends that I had known since my early years of middle school and still felt as if I had no responsibilities to abide by, I still felt as if I was a kid. As the time continued to march on, I noticed more and more of those same friends who I used to see and laugh with everyday move away and start knew lives. In the end I felt as if I was alone with a whole new world of responsibilities and costs pilling upon me. My innocence of being a young kid was no more.
ReplyDeleteThe moment I knew I was not a kid anymore was when I left for boarding school my senior year. It was very far from home and I knew that I was going to have to grow up a lot very fast to succeed. I would need to be accountable for myself in school. I would need to make sure my alarm was set early enough so that I could get to practice on time. I would need to be aware of my surroundings when off campus over the weekend to make sure I was safe. It helped me become an adult.
ReplyDeleteIt was a summer morning and I had just woken up in the upstairs bedroom of my grandparent's cottage. I have been going to this same small deserted house for as long as i can remember. Every room is filled with memories and the stairwell echoes of laughter and tears with my brothers and cousins. I thought that is all my family was, laughter and smiles contained in this small house. But that morning I woke up to screams coming from the overgrown driveway. My mother and her sister were yelling and crying to each other about the brokenness between them and between all the siblings. How one of them always seems to run away and the other is stuck taking care of the rubble left behind. I soon realized that the image I had of my family was just the picture the adults tried to paint for their kids. Behind all the smiles there was built up anger and brokenness and struggle. Years and years of arguments were just waiting to be released at any moment, it only took one small spark to burn down the whole family image. I immediately started to miss seeing my family through a child's eye, because now every small detail is a sign of a bigger problem that lays behind a grinning face.
ReplyDeleteThe moment I knew I was not a kid anymore was when I got my first real job at Chickfila, where I feel like I learned A LOT about other people and myself. I gained such good social skills, such as talking to adults which I would of never experienced if I didn't get this job. I learned how to deal with crappy people as well as how to interact with all types of ages. I used to be pretty shy before this job, but after is when I feel like I finally came out of my shell and flourished.
ReplyDeleteThe moment I knew I was not a kid anymore is when I put my foot on the class to move across the state. Nothing in my life was the same anymore, nothing was easy, and nothing was teamwork. The opposite of home, and a lesson I would soon learn as I navigated college alone. It started when I realized that I was an adult. I will probably never live at home again, was my thought driving away from home. Tears formed in my eye as I took a deep breath, said a prayer, and began my life as a college student. I signed my own things, I was making my own friends, and I was doing my own laundry. These difficulties were only the start of what would be the struggle of adulthood in college.
ReplyDeleteThe moment I knew I wasn’t a kid anymore came soft and rolled over me like thunder. I have curls, they are kinky and coily and sometimes knotted and messy. When I was a kid, it was cute, it was a halo, and I looked like a little lion cub. But I guess I stopped being a kid when those comments regarding my hair turned from it being cute to it being “unkempt”, “too wild”, “needing to be pinned back”, and “wasn’t professional for school”. It was a Tuesday morning, I had just sat down in my 2nd period of the day, for science when Mr. Lockhart said the school counselor wanted to see me. I walked down the dank hall, I didn’t really care what I was called down there for- I had a quiz to take when I got back so as long as I could procrastinate a little longer then ole Miss Sandy could rattle on to me about suicide prevention for all I cared… I meandered into the tight room, tighter than the hallway and squeezed myself down into a purple chai that contrasted greatly with the pea green walls…
ReplyDeleteThe moment i realized i wasnt a kid anymore was when my parents dropped me off for college. Even though college and me moving out had been a conversation for awhile, it had never hit me until the day they finally pulled away and said goodbye . I was now fully on my own. I no longer had my parents at an arms length to be there and help me every time i needed it. I now had to grow up and begin to take care of myself and make a lot of decisions on my own. This disconnection between living at home with my parents to now living on my own is what made me realize that i am no longer a child and that i am now an adult.
ReplyDeleteA moment that first defined who I was and also made me realize that I am not a kid anymore was when I took my first college exam. I know that people always say that test scores don’t define who you are, but for me, these exams define my future as a Nurse. My first college exam made me realize that I am not in high school anymore and things will not just come handed to me. See in high school, all of the teachers just simply give you the answers or don’t make you actually learn the content in a serious manner. When it comes to college, these classes and these grades will help prove my abilities and showcase what I am capable of. The thing that this story of growing up mainly highlights in my opinion is power struggle. An academic life that was once so easy is no longer present in my own life. I have been learning how to fight my own battles. It takes courage and strength to find your balance as a student. When I look back to my high school exams I remember the fact that I didn’t have to study. Now, in college, my exams require weeks of studying and hours upon hours of going over information to know. This transformation is hard. Although it’s a power struggle within myself, I must take my adult responsibilities and know what I am capable of.
ReplyDeleteThe moment of clicking the button, finalizing my decision that I would be continuing my education at the University of Kentucky. That was my moment of realizing I was not a kid anymore. I had made my decision that this was the place I was ready to continue my life at, but clicking the button to schedule my orientation suddenly was a daunting moment of realization. I had been so excited to finalize my decision for over a month, but when the time came to actually do it, tears came to my eyes, I was scared, it was real. I'll be leaving home in a couple months, high school is almost over, and I'll be living on my own.
ReplyDeleteFor a week, I worked non-stop, without breaks or any help from my co-workers. The station was mine to run but I was never in charge. They hired me to cook and they gave me everything, without a raise in their mind. Here comes finals week and that Sunday, I don't feel great at all. I get to work, take some medicine, and get to it. About an hour in, I leave to tell my boss I can't work anymore. the pain is unbearable. They say a few more hours and I can leave and before I know it, I'm sick in the kitchen, with nobody to cook food for my line. My manager says I'm faking it and doesn't believe me, like dozens of times before. "I never get sick. I'm always ignored and punished when it's not my fault." I think to myself. That day, I decided not to let any employer speak to me like the slave they treated me and that was it. Finals week was my final week and I haven't been there since. At this point in my life, I knew I had to start advocating for my own well-being, even if it means biting the hand that feeds me.
ReplyDeleteAs I am sitting there looking at mt screen writing a paper about why a college should choose me over other candidates, I start to realize i am no longer a kid anymore. I am no longer that little kid that would sit at the dining table crying while my dad helps me to do my math home work. Adding fractions was to hard for eight year old me to understand. I am no longer that kid that would be afraid to ask the dumb questions. I am no longer the kid That would do what everyone else was doing just to fit in. after reminiscing on the past i know I'm ready for the future.
ReplyDeleteDonovan Bender.
DeleteThe water was calm, Kids shrieking nearby as they landed into the water from the 15 foot drop, staying in the shallows to accommodate my small, fatless frame, unable to stay Buoyant if I wanted to. In the distance, as girl, a few years younger then I, four or five at most. The water splashed ever so panicked, a blonde head rising ever so infrequently. All concern for personal safety washed down the lake with the joys of children, closing the gap as best as my frail legs could move me in the frigid current. The after as getting deeper, and the girl only slightly closer, finally in arms reach, but the ground was gone. Finding the smallest of stones, barely protruding enough to stand, waiting for an excuse to tip over and sink as many unfortunate souls as it could. I hopped, prayed, held her, hollered. Two minutes pass, my father, the large protester caught notice, hoisting us through the murky near-tomb, to a sun baked rock, where I would rest, satisfied a life for the first time, setting up many more heroics to come.
ReplyDeleteCamden Hedrick
DeleteWe packed all of my life into two vehicles and set off to our destination. College. I was going to be in college. My family and I pulled up to the curb and began to unload box after box onto the designated tables. I looked around and saw other students my age: some stressed out, some teary eyed, and some smiling so brightly. I was among those last few, smiling brightly. This was move-in day, which was the moment I had been waiting for. After a couple hours of assembling and unpacking, my room was finally decorated and I had almost everything I needed. My parents then took one last look at me, proud, and then they met me in an embrace. I watched them walk out of my door. I was feeling all kinds of emotions at once. I was excited, scared, and curious. I went and sat on my bed and listened to the complete silence of my solitude. I was alone now. I have to take care of myself. I realized that I was no longer a kid anymore.
ReplyDeleteAs a country club lifeguard most of my days are easy, just sitting in the sun watching kids whose parents paid hundreds of dollars for them to learn how to swim as soon as possible so that they could have an excuse to sit up at the bar instead of actually watching their own kids. This day was not a normal day though. This day was the day where I realized that no matter how sweet I am or how big my smile is, a rich white male will scream in your face until you give him what you want, or make up some rule so that it is ok for him or his family to do something that is not allowed. This is the day where I had 50 rich white males fighting each other because everyone was breaking rules and disrespecting each other, and it is only ok if they do it and no one else.
ReplyDeleteI grew up in a military kid, all my life we were moving from place to place, experiencing different cultures and people. I learned to become social and responsible because of the freedoms I had. As I got older, my connections with certain places I visited/lived allowed me to stand a part from others and to this day it has allowed me to have a certain mentality. With my mom and dad always working, my brother and I had a nanny growing up and she raised us more than my parents ever did. I feel more inclined to discuss important and personal things with her than my parents. Then after my parents divorce, I stopped sharing altogether. I started picking up certain responsibilities as a little incentive that I was alright even though I wasn’t. Over time, I learned how to open up to certain people, and because of my struggles I was able assimilate back into life and lead a more open life.
ReplyDeleteThe moment I knew I wasn't a kid anymore was when I learned my parents were not as perfect as I thought they were. I held them on this pedestal of what marriage should look like and what it means. I distinctly remember going to my best friend's house and seeing her parents interact. They were so kind and loving towards one another. I couldn't recall the last time my parents had said something kind to the other. As more time progressed, I saw their flaws more visibly and it was hard to grasp. I wanted them to just be a happy married couple. They have told me in the past how they want to work on their relationship but nothing ever changes.
ReplyDeleteAlways a child. Sometimes a child. Never a child. There was never a defining moment of adulthood for her. She was always adult-like, responsible for herself, never asking for help. A sick mother will do that to a girl. So she finds her child in ordinary moments. She will always be a child at heart. Maybe it’s because she was never the kid in the culdesac, but she played in the flour when making dinner for her mother when she couldn’t get out of bed. Don’t be sad for her. Maybe that's just who she is. Always a child inside. Never a child as a burden. Sometimes a child is a summary.
ReplyDeleteThe moment I knew I wasn’t a kid anymore as when I threw my cap in the air at high school graduation. I felt like I could finally be on my own and make my own choices since college was only 2 months away. I knew what I had in front of me and I wanted to pursue it instantly. I think it really hit me that I wasn’t a kid anymore when I hugged my friends goodbye knowing that weekend sleepovers are gonna turn into once a month if even that FaceTime calls. I went from living under my moms roof to living with 3 complete strangers that are now my best friends. I don’t feel obligated to act a certain way, to agree with everyone to avoid conflict, dress a certain way, do my hair every morning, etc. I’m an adult now. I don’t have to worry about high school drama anymore or if my cheer team has to cheer at a football game. I have to worry about what I know I want to worry about rather than forced to worry about.
ReplyDeleteMy first time placing the key into the ignition and turning the engine over I knew I was no longer a child. Learning to drive is a major step towards adulthood and one the I will remember forever. I will never forget the the deep groan of my dad’s old pickup as I pulled out of the driveway. My hands were sweaty, but still I clenched the steering wheel as if I was hanging on for dear life. This new freedom carried a huge responsibility with it. As I drove slowly towards the end of the street I could see my house fading in my rear view mirror. The beginning of my journey toward adulthood has begun.
ReplyDeleteI'd spent the entire summer buying decorations for my new dorm room in efforts to perfect the aesthetic. I had updated my closet in order to shift my style from homebody high schooler to independent college student. Arriving in Lexington was like all my dreams were coming true. My dorm was perfect and my closet was complete. Then my family drove away. Tears were unexpected, but inevitable. At that moment I realized my fear of independence. Maybe I was both. A homebody college student.
ReplyDeleteThe moment I knew I was not a kid anymore was when I got my first job. This came with so many responsibilities. Having to be somewhere on time and being reliable to come in and do m job. This helped me realize I am starting to buying things with my own money, and once you start, you never stop. My dad told me i needed a job, if i wanted to be able to drive. Being able to drive on your own is another realization that you are not a kid anymore. You stop depending so much on your parents and start depending on yourself. vmb
ReplyDeleteI began to understand the feeling of being an adult at a young age when I opened my first IRA at the age of 15. But this was not the moment that adulthood dawned on me. Coming from a place with little to no exposure toward the real world I felt that I would never find what it was like to be an adult unless I changed my productive environment. Once I realized what I needed to do to advance my life into adulthood it took some time to find the right location and college. But I was confident in my decision that was attending the University of Kentucky. Even though for a period of time I was the only person in favor of this decision, as I lacked financial support from family and emotional support from my parents as I settled on the decision of Kentucky. This is when adulthood started to dawn on me. When I had to make the decision between a lack of happiness with major financial support, or chase the happiness I envisioned without any financial help. Even though I have faced the fear of going into debt or not being happy with my current state in life, I still feel like I am searching for that defining moment that makes me feel like an adult.
ReplyDeletethe moment I realized I wasn't a kid anymore is when I had to come to terms with who my dad really was. his actions, his words, I didn't get a normal childhood because of him. I had to grow up really fast in attempt to save myself from horrible situations no child should ever go through. it was a events that I shouldn't have to remember. im supposed to have a normal childhood with normal family vacations and normal family dinners. I didn't.
ReplyDelete