There is no doubt that yesterday is gone and the future has not come yet, so we only have today to enjoy and observe. Over the years, I have realized that life can be understood only towards the rear, through a prism of time, as it is the myriad of casual situations and dozens of some life events and twists that have altogether played a significant role in making me who I am now. Another thing that that I have realized is that one does not craft himself or herself. Instead, a character is more a result of living side-by-side with many other people, interacting with them, watching, listening and learning from them. Therefore, by knowing a person’s story of life, analyzing his or her life experiences, examining what kind of people they were may help to make a conclusion about what type of a human being a person is.
I was born and lived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I would like to acknowledge that I was blessed to be born in the family of Arthur and Eartha, who embraced me with love and care, and have always supported me on my life path, regardless of the obstacles I was facing. I was happy to share my life with two of my brothers and one sister; however, unfortunately, she passed away. Just like any other person’s early years, my childhood was the time of discoveries, experiments, alternations, and improvements. My parents wanted me to enjoy the life to its fullest; they were eager to show me as much of our country as possible, so we were often going on vacations. Some of the brightest memories of my childhood are linked to those trips, especially the ones to sunny Florida and South Carolina. I am grateful to my parents, because by taking me on those family vacations, they exposed me to a slightly different culture for the first time. I got a chance to see that people might be doing things that are common to me in a different way, and learn to tolerate and respect such differences. In addition, it was then when I learned how to get acquainted with people and introduce myself in new companies. As I see from the perspective of the older me at this point of time, I managed to blend up with people who were different from me. Indeed, it was my childhood when I realized that I would have to adjust myself to new circumstances: otherwise, I would be facing a lot of difficulties living in the fast-changing society. Today, when I look back at my early years, I feel only positive emotions and sometimes even wish I could be a child again, at least for a few days.
When I became a bit older, it was time for me to start my activities at school. I still perfectly remember the first time I pronounced the name of my elementary school – Hartramp Elementary School. That was a whole new world for me – getting up early in the mornings, doing homework, learning new things about the world around me. But what I liked the most was getting acquainted with young people and making friends. However, that was also the time of learning what envy, timidity, anger, and frustration are. I consider my time as an elementary school student to be the actual start of the formation of the character I have now. I was lucky to have gained a few good friends, and I am happy that we managed to sustain our friendship for a couple of years until the whirlpool of life pulled us apart. But I still do stay in touch with them, and from time to time we drop a few lines to each other.
After Hartramp Elementary, I went to John Paul Jones Junior High School, and my further education institution was William Penn High School. I consider it to be quite a great change in my life, and I am extremely grateful that I have been given such opportunities. There I was studying with people of different backgrounds, races, and nationalities, and those school days along with the wise words of my parents taught me to respect a person for his or her inner world, and not the outer features or social attributes. I also learned that I should not judge people by what they look like, as it is a soul and character that make a person who she or he is. Just to sum up, I think that my school years were a guide on how to live in the “melting pot” of both the United States of America and the world as a globalized whole.
At the same time, now, as I am writing this paper and looking back at my past, I realize that it is not just me who was coping with problems, and that it was not just my parents who were helping me to do so. I know that there has always been somebody near me, who was leading me as I was taking one step after another, day after day. I know it was God. I am a Christian, and I am sure that without Lord I would not have been able to complete many of my aims. However, at the same time, I realize that this is the religion I follow, and the viewpoint I have. I mean, I know that some other people might be of a different religion, and I do respect their choice. This is also something that I learned while studying and working with the others, as well as something that my parents taught me. I deeply believe that everyone is empowered to make his or her own choice, and that others should treat such decisions with respect. This is how the world should look like: set to mutual understanding, care and respect.