Please post here the event-based narrative you've written about your interviewee. Remember, it should be scene based and no less than 250 words. There can certainly be overlapping material with your other narrative, but not overlapping language.
One summer, Christian Harnden decided to take on a summer job and, since he very much enjoys the ocean and water-related activities, he decided to work at the Yacht Club in Melbourne, Florida. He was hired as a sailing instructor, though he did not actually have any sailing experience prior to taking on this job. This relates back to one of the first experiences he had when he first reported for duties at the club when some of his coworkers and himself took some boats out on the water and a large storm hit. The waves and wind caused the boats to flip constantly and everyone was in a bit of a panic mode. The boats were rather small and though they were not difficult to flip back over once the waves took them down, the storm was relentless and it did little good to try to keep them right-side-up. Christian was the only one able to swim back to the shore so they deemed him the most competent and set him in charge of teaching the children coming in for a summer camp how to sail. He very much enjoyed this job and contemplates doing it again this summer. After finding himself in deep waters, figuratively and literally, he now has experience and knowledge about sailing. This also gives him the opportunity to speak with many of the parents of the children attending the summer programs at the Yacht Club which allows him to do some networking that may provide useful when he goes on to his career in the future.
samantha's transition from high school to college was very hard for her. she had to leave all her family and friends behind to travel to a new city where she didnt know anybody. when she finally got to college, all her relationships from back home became long distance and hard to maintain. her first day on campus was very overwhelming. it was what seemed to be 1,000,000 people on campus trying to move in just like her. adapting to the college setting was difficult for her and it took her longer than usual to get use to it. she quickly saw the difference in class size in comparison with what she was use to in highschool, and that made things worse. STA2122 and MAC1105 were her hardest classes by far but she managed to pull through with the help of tutors. eventually she became more open and social. she made new friends and formed new bonds. she joined the Seminole christian life this semester. samantha overcame the hardships she had at the beginning of her college life and is now prospering at florida state university.
After successfully completing four years of torturous high school, Gabbi Barker packed up her things and moved to Tallahassee so she could start her new life as a college student at Florida State University. Luckily, Gabbi managed to snag a single dorm for Summer Session C, but she realized that she was by herself after moving in. Thankfully, Gabbi met her current best friend, Emily, on the second day of the session and they decided to rush in the fall. Gabbi had to learn new responsibilities after moving to Tallahassee, such as going out of her way to meet new people and managing her time. Unlike many incoming freshmen, she already knew how to do her laundry, but she still hates doing it, but so do most freshmen. Besides her sorority, Alpha Phi, Gabbi isn’t involved in many things this year, but she plans on joining more groups next year. She does, however, have a heavy course load of 16 credit hours, so she spends around ten hours a week at Club Stroz. Gabbi goes home about once every 2 months or so, partially for her family but mostly for the better food, considering her dad is a chef. If Gabbi could give her senior year-self any advice regarding college, she would tell her to study as much as possible and be on time! She has adjusted to college life really well, and she loves attending the various concerts that happen in Tallahassee, her favorite being a DJ known as Marshmello. If she’s not at the library, her sorority house, or a concert, you can probably find Gabbi on Landis playing with the cutest dogs in the world because who doesn’t like sunshine and cute pups?
A very centric event in Andrew Stevens’ life actually happened just last year, during the summer between his freshman and sophomore year of college. Over the summer, Andrew traveled overseas to both London and Paris with his younger sister as well as both his mother and father. The reason he traveled overseas was because his father was born in London, so they went to go visit his grandmother on his father’s side of the family. Typically, his grandmother would travel overseas to the United States during the summer, but this year they decided to do just the opposite and go and visit her instead. They spent around twenty or so days overseas, spending around two days in Paris, but they spent the majority of their time in London. However, during their short-lived journey in Paris, Andrew got the chance to see the famous Eiffel Tower and even took a few pictures of it. However, while they were in London, they stayed in a hotel next to the Shard, which Andrew has informed me is the tallest building in London. Also, while Andrew and his family were in London, they visited Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum. They also got to see the famous Big Ben and got the opportunity to ride on the London Eye. He and his family also took a train at one point two a small town in England known as Henley-on-Thames. Besides all of these adventures, Andrew and his family mostly just walked around London together seeing all of the attractions in the city, but had a wonderful experience regardless.
One of the biggest transitions for Bianca would be the overall transition from Cleveland to Ohio at the age of just ten. She didn’t know how to prepare for it or what to expect. It was her first time moving away and she was scared to begin a whole new experience. Coming from up north, she had never experienced the amount of heat that Florida has to offer and it has been a difficult adaptation. She still has not gotten used to the heat up unto this day. The natural environment was different as all of the palm trees and sunshine was something she had never seen. In Cleveland, the weather was gloomy and there was not as much sunlight as Orlando. The roads and buildings were not the same as they weren’t as nice and there were not as much. The people were even different. In Cleveland, it was easy for her to stay to herself because nearly everyone was the same way. Everyone stayed in their own lane and minded their own business. In Florida, she realized that people were much more friendly and that nearly anyone would come and speak with you. She also got a chance to see how popular tourism actually is. People visit cities in Florida on a regular basis. Much more than that of Cleveland. Even though Cleveland is a decent sized city, Orlando was still a little different in that was much bigger and seemed to huge to her upon her arrival.
Daria Root, my interview partner, recalls the day she moved from New York like it was yesterday. She and her family had been living in her grandparents’ house for about a month because her previous home sold earlier than expected. However, as move-in day grew closer, she became more and more excited. Her family would now be relocating to Fort Myers, Florida. She recalls being overjoyed at the fact that she would be living near a beach for once, something most people from New York couldn’t fathom. Daria’s dad woke her up at around three o’clock in the morning to begin their twenty-one hour drive down south. In the midst of packing the car, she was led down the stairs to a dark hallway where her grandmother was crying and telling Daria’s mother that she was taking her grandchildren away from her. However, it was cold so they quickly finished packing and hit the road. Reflecting on the people she was leaving behind, she appreciated everything her grandparents did for her family. Her grandparents were such a huge part of her life since she was a little kid so naturally it would be difficult to leave them. Being separated from her family, Daria soon realized her most significant value, relationships. This has translated into many personable skills for her, as she is very outgoing and keeps the ones close to her heart within reach. Now she does a great job of staying in touch with her family, because she seeks to maintain strong bonds throughout her live. She ends the story with a touching quote, “No matter how far I go, I will always have a support system”.
In our interview, Max Dou said that the event that had the greatest impact on him was the transition from Spain to the U.S. He told me that his parents informed him that they were leaving Barcelona a couple weeks after Christmas. He was destroyed of course, he was leaving behind all of his friends as well as everything he ever knew. He had to start again from zero. He told me that the weeks after he received the news he tried to argue in rebuttal and was in a depressive state for 2-3 weeks. He understood the reason why his parents made this decision but he didn't want to accept it. It took him a while to go back to normal, and around February he let his friends know that he wouldn’t be able to graduate alongside them. Although they were sad about the news, they were excited to know more about Miami and often joked about it. The memory that he holds the dearest happened a few weeks before the due date. In surprise, his friends made him a surprise farewell party and gifted him Catalonia’s flag and a Barcelona basketball jersey with his name and soccer number in the back. He said that although he started his life anew for the third or fourth time, he knew there was a place he could call home as well as friends that he can rely on even if they’re all the way across the Atlantic. He continues to stay in contact with them and every time he goes back to Spain he spends as much time as he can with them.
Judley’s parents were immigrants and they pushed him to be the first person in the family to get an education and to attend college. While Judley never thought, he did not want to attend college, his parents would always encourage him to apply for schools and study hard. While applying, he wrote essays about his life and his personal struggles to push on to further his education. Because his parents pushed him hard all of high-school, the final step was sending in his transcript. He was so excited to receive the news that he was admitted into the university and his parents took it very seriously and urged him not to mess up this amazing opportunity. When he arrived to FSU his parents realized how tough it was to have their son be 8 hours from home. They got over that when they realized he had accomplished his goal in being the first in his family to attend college. Before his parents left they again encouraged him to study hard. Judley was expecting college to be challenging and he was right. His biggest fear would be failure because he is making his people at home very proud. His fear of failure and the challenging courses motivate Judley to push himself to become a huge success.
“Love the life you live” with motivation from a quote like that it's hard not to love the life that you live, which is exactly what Brooke does. A centric event in Brooke’s life that she will never forget is when she broke her arm twice in less than one year. The first time she broke her arm it came as an accident when Brooke was in the third grade, Brooke naturally, because of her love of adventure, fell off of a rock climbing wall in third grade. The funniest part about Brooke’s story was that she didn't even know her arm was broken at the time. Brooke went without knowing that her arm was broken until she broke her arm again and made a visit to the emergency room. The doctor pulled up an x ray of Brooke's arm and showed her where her bone had been fractured and how it healed. Before telling her that segment broke her arm for the second time in the same exact place. The second time Brooke broke her arm, she fell off of a scooter. Because of Brooke's active lifestyle it didn't come as a surprise that she may have broken a few bones throughout her lifetime. Brooke is also very very big on horseback riding. She loves horses and has been riding them for as long as she can remember. In her free time you can find her as close to horses as she can be. Another thing that Brooke enjoys is hiking and fishing.
Foster Dore can easily recall a specific day he came home from school when he was younger. Foster came into his home on a normal day in New Orleans, Louisiana, when he was just seven years old. Foster recalls hearing much discussion specifically involving evacuation. “Evacuate” just didn’t make sense to Foster, being only 7 and never experiencing that word before. Confused, he tried to piece it together, understanding there was a hurricane headed towards his childhood home. The one thing Foster couldn’t understand was why he had to leave, though encouraged they would be taking a small vacation. Foster packed his bags with enough clothes for a week, still remembering the school he would be missing that next day. It was a hard concept for a 7 year old to grasp. Foster and his family stayed in a hotel in Biloxi, Mississippi, watching the destruction happening in his home town on the TV, though not completely safe from the storm in Mississippi. A week later, Foster headed home to a sad scene. His home was no longer the same from when he left it, roads being blocked by power lines, trees, building pieces, and lots of debris. The destruction was so horrible, Foster had to attend school in Virginia solely so he could pass the second grade. His childhood home was ruined and he was unable to see his friends. Foster went through an extremely hard event, shaping the person he is today. Hurricane Katrina changed Foster as a person, creating a mature, strong individual.
The greatest impact in Andrea’s life was her surgery. Her mom was born with a minor case of hip dysplasia and got it fixed with a cast at birth. Since the deformation can be genetically transmitted, Andrea was born with a more severe displacement. Hip dysplasia is a misalignment of the hip joint. Similar to her mom, the doctors tried to treat it by placing a cast when she was a baby. Unfortunately, the results didn’t go as planned and her hips never fully developed correctly. When she came to the US, she found help with Dr. Storer, a Pediatric Orthopedic Surgeon at Joe Dimaggio Children’s Hospital in Hollywood, FL. They told her that she needed to do the surgery or she’ll suffer through hip pain, through pregnancy and as she gets older. During the summer of 2008, at ten years old, Andrea went through a four-hour surgery on her right hip. A month later, surgery was performed on her left hip. She got to go home two weeks after each surgery. It took her all of summer to heal. She rapidly went to physical therapy to basically learn how to walk again. She entered fifth grade on a wheelchair and slowly transitioned to crutches. The doctor told her it would take about 4 years to fully heal. But, two year later, the doctor found out that her left leg was growing faster than her right, so she had to go through another surgery. They had to drill her left knee to slow down the growth and even out her leg length. She’s now fully recovered with five scars from the surgery and a “penguin” walk that’ll always stick with her.
One of the most eventful years Marissa has experienced in her life so far was her senior year at John Caroll Catholic High School. Despite already being a part of her school’s choir, Marissa also enjoyed acting and was active in the theater department. During her senior year, Marissa was cast to play the leading role as Anne Frank in her schools’ adaption of The Diary of Anne Frank. Of course, as excited and as honored as she was to take up the challenge of being the main character in the play, Marissa also felt the weight of all her responsibilities. According to herself, for a while during her senior year, Marissa’s life consisted of school, choir rehearsal, and then play rehearsal. Marissa’s role as the leading lady in her play called her to learn 8 whole monologues, on top of all the other lines she was scripted to have during the play. Adding even more pressure onto Marissa was the fact that during the whole play, no cast members were allowed to leave the stage. The set had been made to look like the annex that Anne and her family, along with another family, hid in during WW2. As exhausting as it was to be “on” the whole show, Marissa did admit that it really helped her stay in character. The local Jewish and Holocaust center even came to watch. What made this whole experience even more special to Marissa was the fact that in the crowd was an actual Holocaust survivor. After the show, the old man, named Herzel went backstage to tell the cast and crew about his life during the Holocaust. While telling his story, Marissa and the cast noticed that Herzel kept repeating the same part of the story over and over again and nobody could understand why. Finally, the discovered that Herzel had actually been having a stroke and nobody knew it. All this made senior year one of the most memorable parts of Marissa’s life.
Mr. Ryan Moots has certainly had an eventful life, but he has said that one of his most fascinating experiences was his joining of a school band program. He stated that it has had a huge impact on him and his enjoyment of music. While still in high school, Ryan was approached by his then-girlfriend and his best friend. They both informed him that he should join band, thinking he would be great at it and have much fun with learning to play an instrument. At the time, Ryan had little to no musical experience with playing musical instruments and the idea of joining the school band had probably not crossed his mind. Deciding to try something new, he eventually agreed and ended up joining his high school drumline. He began by playing auxiliary percussions and the symbols. Soon, he fell in love with his newfound hobby and continued to play in his school band, making for a great experience in high school. As Ryan continued his newfound interest in musical instruments, he went on to play marching base and performing snare in the band. Continuing on with his passion for playing on the drums, Ryan also performed ensembles duets, and solos at his school. One of his performances impressed so much, that it earned a superior rating in one of the band competitions. These accomplishments and experiences in high school have had a profound influence on Ryan, as he still continues his hobby of jamming on the drums today.
Sophia Wennin has done very many interesting things from which I can choose to write about for her story, such as going to Amsterdam and going to Germany among other things. However, one of the most interesting stories is the story of how her grandparents met and how she is here today. Her grandfather left Germany after WW2 and went to Columbia where he stayed in an apartment. The woman who owned said apartment was pregnant and struggled to figure out what to name her baby. She decided to name her baby Ernst after Sophia's grandfather, which would unknowingly become a form of foreshadowing for the future. Later, her grandfather went to a club to go dancing with some friends. He saw her grandmother there with all of her friends and tried very hard to impress them; however, her grandmother thought he was somewhat of a loser at the time. He liked her and recognized that she was wearing a bracelet with her name on it. Even later, Sophia's grandfather and his friends were playing with a ball on the beach. They accidentally hit a girl with their ball and when he went to get the ball, he noticed that she had the same bracelet and that it was Sophia's grandmother again! Even though they did not speak the same language, they went out on a date together and eventually were married and had children. Surprisingly enough, their daughter(Sophia's aunt) married Ernst, the baby who was named after Sophia's grandfather.
A major event in Ariana Cordona's life was taking a job in Quincy, Florida to assist with children who has special needs. Throughout Ariana Cordona's life she enjoyed helping people that could not help themselves. Having a younger brother to always prevent her older sister from being too controlling over them made her the perfect middle child. When it came to giving gifts she always goes for the most heartfelt way possible, such as baking cookies for her good friends. It was only natural that she would want to show this type of love and adoration to kids with special needs. Her longing to do so is apparent, due to the fact that she drives 30 minutes everyday to see the smiles on their faces when she teaches them a math lesson. Whether it is reading a book or showing them how to write, she gains happiness through other peoples happiness. We see this at her other job working at Titus Gym, aiding kids who struggle with obesity. In their time of need, she is there to provide her unrelenting support and compassion. She gives these kids the encouragement and strength to reach their weight lost goals. Often time she finds the kids too tired or too down on themselves. However, she always has an encouraging word to say that brightens their day. The same things can be said about the school she tutors at. Due to special needs, the kids often find it difficult to solve a problem for themselves, but Ariana Cordona assists in putting them in a place to help themselves and push their selves past their limitations.
After being born and raised in this vibrant college town and state capital, Sarah Mattis found herself moving five and a half hours from Tallanasty to Fort Myers after middle school and began her next four years at Fort Myers High School. Sarah moved with her older brother and mom and was thrilled to call this beach town full of sunshine and snowbirds her new home. Even though she attended all private schools as a child, Sarah continued her academic journey in Fort Myers at a public school as part of their IB program. Luckily, moving to a new city didn’t stop her from finding her closest friends and doing what she loves which is singing and theater. Marching band on the other hand was not quite her calling, but that just solidified her love for classical music and singing in choir. Being a part of her high school choir she had the opportunity to visit and perform at Carnegie Hall in New York. Choir has remained a part of Sarah’s life here at FSU and she loves having a job singing in her church’s choir 2 days a week. As she lived in Fort Myers, Sarah kept finding more reasons to love the new city a little more than her hometown. She even met her best friend, Kaylee, because of her family’s move. While it was hard for Sarah and Kaylee to separate when college came around, Sarah is just happy that her BFF is enjoying the blue and orange swamp in Gainesville. When she lived in a city near beautiful beaches, Sarah and her family loved to be out on the water and would go sailing with their neighbors on the weekends to soak up the south Florida sun.
Ashleigh Forehand has wanted to attend Florida State for years, but that wish is not necessarily what prepared her for making such a smooth transition to a new environment with 40,000 students and mostly new faces. The college transition is not always easy and students often struggle to feel comfortable for some time before finding the place they belong and a quality group of people to spend time with. Ashleigh did not have much struggle with this because she has mastered changing schools, making friends, and feels totally comfortable in somewhat unfamiliar situations. The reason she does not shy away from this new challenge is because she has been in it before. Before her family moved from Virginia to Florida, they moved around in Virginia, a lot. In a span of five years, Ashleigh attended five different schools. The ability to adapt to new surroundings without much trouble is a very important skill to have and will help Ashleigh be successful in all of her life. The same skill that made her transition from high school to college an easy transition will also make her transition from college to the workforce an easy one. Ashleigh will be successful for the rest of her life because since such a young age, she has understood why people struggle in the hard situations they find themselves in. While Ashleigh isn’t entirely sure what she wants to do in the field of family and child sciences, I know she will do a great job because she will understand a lot of the uncomfortable situations children face when they find themselves far outside of their comfort zones.
When Angelie moved from Miami, where she has resided for almost the entirety of her life, she found this moment significant. She was not scared, but instead she was shocked. What shocked her the most was not the difficulty of the curriculum, or the sizes of her classes, but the way in which students seemed to care so little. One of Angelie’s first classes was CGS, which has a substantial class size. She would watch as at least 10 kids rose out of their seats and walked out, not even 15 minutes into class. The professor did not even give this acknowledgment. Angelie was also overwhelmed by the variety of majors and organizations, because just like any of us Angelie was trying to find herself in such a challenging and new environment. She had stopped cheerleading and didn’t immediately join any groups, as she wanted to grow acclimated to her surroundings and adjust comfortably in her academics first. However, it did not take Angelie too long to grow comfortable in her new home. As a CARE program student, she interacted frequently with many new students and made many new friends. Before attending the university, Angelie considered herself more exclusive socially, because she had a simple friend group in high school. However, now Angelie considers herself more open with new people who have different social preferences or diverse upbringings. She is currently in her 3rd semester of college and has found that she has adjusted quite well, she plans to join more organizations next semester.
Davian's transition to college wasn't an easy one. Like many people, going to college is a huge event. It's a completely different world, different from anything he's ever known. He first arrived during the summer, not long after high school, and he mainly kept to himself the entire time. He didn't go to parties or any events, but decided to be immersed in his studies, earning very high grades. He was quite pleased with himself. College was a new environment for him, and there were so many people. All kinds of people he never thought he'd cross paths with, but he did. He learned not to judge anyone, because you never know what they're going through. He's still reserved and to himself, but is open to any friendship that may develop over the course of his undergraduate years. He is currently majoring in Sports Management and excells in all areas. Most importantly, he's learned to stay grounded and be humble and not to get distracted because he has many goals and will do whatever he can to reach them.
In her junior year of high school, Colleen was given the opportunity by her choir to take a trip to New York City where they would perform and explore the city. At first, she was a bit nervous because she had only known Tallahassee her whole life, and had never left home without her family. However, everything changed when she got to New York City. On her flight to the Big Apple, she had a window seat and got to witness New York City's skyline as the sun was rising on an early spring day. It was love at first sight, and she knew she was going to have an amazing trip. When her choir landed, they went straight to rehearsal, but afterwards they got to explore the city a little. Colleen loved the way the city felt, how big it was and the hustle and bustle of people and the abundance of skyscrapers. When the night time came, Colleen and her choir friends got to go see musicals on Broadway, and on her first and favorite night, they saw the Phantom of the Opera. After just watching her first Broadway performance, Colleen's love and appreciation for musicals was sparked and she knew her life would never be the same without it. In addition to Phantom, Colleen's choir got to watch another 5 musicals, and she loved every one of them. After watching a Broadway performance on one of the nights, they went into FAO Schwartz and Colleen danced on the piano from the musical "Big" and she had so much fun that she felt she was part of a movie. On her final night in New York City, her choir performed at the John the Divine cathedral and it was one of the most life changing experiences of her life. Colleen's trip to New York City with her choir was a very special life event that she will never forget.
Quentin went to Nova for all four years of high school. In his time there he joined the engineering club. His most memorable moment in his life so far is when he graduated from Nova High School in 2016. Not only was this a huge accomplishment and proud moment for himself, but it was also a great moment for is family. Quentin is the first generation in his family to attend college, so once he was admitted to Florida State University it made the event even grander. He carried over his love for engineering and computers to Florida State. He is now majoring in Computer Science in college. In his spare time he enjoys watching videos to help educate himself on computers and science. He is extremely lucky to be majoring in something he is so passionate about. After undergrad at Florida State, he hopes to obtain a job or internship in the field of computer science, such as programming computers. So far in his short 18 years of life, he has already accomplished so much, and will continue to do so through out his life. Being the first to graduate high school and attend college in his family is such a rewarding feeling knowing that he is changing things forever for his family. Quentin is constantly making his family proud with everything he has accomplished, he is holding his family name up high.
Dance has always been a major component of Audrey Lugo’s life. She began dancing as young girl, training in many different styles and even going en pointe. Of the memories that shaped her the most as a dancer was about 6 summers ago. She was 13 years old, a time where most young girls are only thinking about how to rid their face of acne or get a boy’s attention. Not Audrey: at thirteen she was an aspiring ballerina. She was invited to a six-week long intensive at the Joffrey Ballet School in New York City. This was a huge deal; only the best of the best young dancers get to go to such a prestigious program. She and her mother traveled up to NYC that summer, leaving her dad, her brother, and her beloved dog behind in Miami. They stayed in a small New York apartment as Audrey attended ballet classes every day. She reflects on this time as a humbling experience; it was a time to learn that there will always be someone better and that she should always keep working. Those six weeks of trying to succeed as a dancer in New York really shaped her as a dancer and inspired her to always work hard, be humble, and balance her time wisely. She uses the lessons she learned at the Joffrey Ballet School not only in her dance career, but in her everyday life as a student, an aspiring physical therapist, a sister, a daughter, and young woman.
ReplyDeleteOne summer, Christian Harnden decided to take on a summer job and, since he very much enjoys the ocean and water-related activities, he decided to work at the Yacht Club in Melbourne, Florida. He was hired as a sailing instructor, though he did not actually have any sailing experience prior to taking on this job. This relates back to one of the first experiences he had when he first reported for duties at the club when some of his coworkers and himself took some boats out on the water and a large storm hit. The waves and wind caused the boats to flip constantly and everyone was in a bit of a panic mode. The boats were rather small and though they were not difficult to flip back over once the waves took them down, the storm was relentless and it did little good to try to keep them right-side-up. Christian was the only one able to swim back to the shore so they deemed him the most competent and set him in charge of teaching the children coming in for a summer camp how to sail. He very much enjoyed this job and contemplates doing it again this summer. After finding himself in deep waters, figuratively and literally, he now has experience and knowledge about sailing. This also gives him the opportunity to speak with many of the parents of the children attending the summer programs at the Yacht Club which allows him to do some networking that may provide useful when he goes on to his career in the future.
samantha's transition from high school to college was very hard for her. she had to leave all her family and friends behind to travel to a new city where she didnt know anybody. when she finally got to college, all her relationships from back home became long distance and hard to maintain. her first day on campus was very overwhelming. it was what seemed to be 1,000,000 people on campus trying to move in just like her. adapting to the college setting was difficult for her and it took her longer than usual to get use to it. she quickly saw the difference in class size in comparison with what she was use to in highschool, and that made things worse. STA2122 and MAC1105 were her hardest classes by far but she managed to pull through with the help of tutors. eventually she became more open and social. she made new friends and formed new bonds. she joined the Seminole christian life this semester. samantha overcame the hardships she had at the beginning of her college life and is now prospering at florida state university.
ReplyDeleteAfter successfully completing four years of torturous high school, Gabbi Barker packed up her things and moved to Tallahassee so she could start her new life as a college student at Florida State University. Luckily, Gabbi managed to snag a single dorm for Summer Session C, but she realized that she was by herself after moving in. Thankfully, Gabbi met her current best friend, Emily, on the second day of the session and they decided to rush in the fall. Gabbi had to learn new responsibilities after moving to Tallahassee, such as going out of her way to meet new people and managing her time. Unlike many incoming freshmen, she already knew how to do her laundry, but she still hates doing it, but so do most freshmen. Besides her sorority, Alpha Phi, Gabbi isn’t involved in many things this year, but she plans on joining more groups next year. She does, however, have a heavy course load of 16 credit hours, so she spends around ten hours a week at Club Stroz. Gabbi goes home about once every 2 months or so, partially for her family but mostly for the better food, considering her dad is a chef. If Gabbi could give her senior year-self any advice regarding college, she would tell her to study as much as possible and be on time! She has adjusted to college life really well, and she loves attending the various concerts that happen in Tallahassee, her favorite being a DJ known as Marshmello. If she’s not at the library, her sorority house, or a concert, you can probably find Gabbi on Landis playing with the cutest dogs in the world because who doesn’t like sunshine and cute pups?
ReplyDeleteA very centric event in Andrew Stevens’ life actually happened just last year, during the summer between his freshman and sophomore year of college. Over the summer, Andrew traveled overseas to both London and Paris with his younger sister as well as both his mother and father. The reason he traveled overseas was because his father was born in London, so they went to go visit his grandmother on his father’s side of the family. Typically, his grandmother would travel overseas to the United States during the summer, but this year they decided to do just the opposite and go and visit her instead. They spent around twenty or so days overseas, spending around two days in Paris, but they spent the majority of their time in London. However, during their short-lived journey in Paris, Andrew got the chance to see the famous Eiffel Tower and even took a few pictures of it. However, while they were in London, they stayed in a hotel next to the Shard, which Andrew has informed me is the tallest building in London. Also, while Andrew and his family were in London, they visited Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum. They also got to see the famous Big Ben and got the opportunity to ride on the London Eye. He and his family also took a train at one point two a small town in England known as Henley-on-Thames. Besides all of these adventures, Andrew and his family mostly just walked around London together seeing all of the attractions in the city, but had a wonderful experience regardless.
ReplyDeleteOne of the biggest transitions for Bianca would be the overall transition from Cleveland to Ohio at the age of just ten. She didn’t know how to prepare for it or what to expect. It was her first time moving away and she was scared to begin a whole new experience. Coming from up north, she had never experienced the amount of heat that Florida has to offer and it has been a difficult adaptation. She still has not gotten used to the heat up unto this day. The natural environment was different as all of the palm trees and sunshine was something she had never seen. In Cleveland, the weather was gloomy and there was not as much sunlight as Orlando. The roads and buildings were not the same as they weren’t as nice and there were not as much. The people were even different. In Cleveland, it was easy for her to stay to herself because nearly everyone was the same way. Everyone stayed in their own lane and minded their own business. In Florida, she realized that people were much more friendly and that nearly anyone would come and speak with you. She also got a chance to see how popular tourism actually is. People visit cities in Florida on a regular basis. Much more than that of Cleveland. Even though Cleveland is a decent sized city, Orlando was still a little different in that was much bigger and seemed to huge to her upon her arrival.
ReplyDeleteDaria Root, my interview partner, recalls the day she moved from New York like it was yesterday. She and her family had been living in her grandparents’ house for about a month because her previous home sold earlier than expected. However, as move-in day grew closer, she became more and more excited. Her family would now be relocating to Fort Myers, Florida. She recalls being overjoyed at the fact that she would be living near a beach for once, something most people from New York couldn’t fathom. Daria’s dad woke her up at around three o’clock in the morning to begin their twenty-one hour drive down south. In the midst of packing the car, she was led down the stairs to a dark hallway where her grandmother was crying and telling Daria’s mother that she was taking her grandchildren away from her. However, it was cold so they quickly finished packing and hit the road. Reflecting on the people she was leaving behind, she appreciated everything her grandparents did for her family. Her grandparents were such a huge part of her life since she was a little kid so naturally it would be difficult to leave them. Being separated from her family, Daria soon realized her most significant value, relationships. This has translated into many personable skills for her, as she is very outgoing and keeps the ones close to her heart within reach. Now she does a great job of staying in touch with her family, because she seeks to maintain strong bonds throughout her live. She ends the story with a touching quote, “No matter how far I go, I will always have a support system”.
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ReplyDeleteIn our interview, Max Dou said that the event that had the greatest impact on him was the transition from Spain to the U.S. He told me that his parents informed him that they were leaving Barcelona a couple weeks after Christmas. He was destroyed of course, he was leaving behind all of his friends as well as everything he ever knew. He had to start again from zero. He told me that the weeks after he received the news he tried to argue in rebuttal and was in a depressive state for 2-3 weeks. He understood the reason why his parents made this decision but he didn't want to accept it. It took him a while to go back to normal, and around February he let his friends know that he wouldn’t be able to graduate alongside them. Although they were sad about the news, they were excited to know more about Miami and often joked about it. The memory that he holds the dearest happened a few weeks before the due date. In surprise, his friends made him a surprise farewell party and gifted him Catalonia’s flag and a Barcelona basketball jersey with his name and soccer number in the back. He said that although he started his life anew for the third or fourth time, he knew there was a place he could call home as well as friends that he can rely on even if they’re all the way across the Atlantic. He continues to stay in contact with them and every time he goes back to Spain he spends as much time as he can with them.
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ReplyDeleteJudley’s parents were immigrants and they pushed him to be the first person in the family to get an education and to attend college. While Judley never thought, he did not want to attend college, his parents would always encourage him to apply for schools and study hard. While applying, he wrote essays about his life and his personal struggles to push on to further his education. Because his parents pushed him hard all of high-school, the final step was sending in his transcript. He was so excited to receive the news that he was admitted into the university and his parents took it very seriously and urged him not to mess up this amazing opportunity. When he arrived to FSU his parents realized how tough it was to have their son be 8 hours from home. They got over that when they realized he had accomplished his goal in being the first in his family to attend college. Before his parents left they again encouraged him to study hard. Judley was expecting college to be challenging and he was right. His biggest fear would be failure because he is making his people at home very proud. His fear of failure and the challenging courses motivate Judley to push himself to become a huge success.
ReplyDelete“Love the life you live” with motivation from a quote like that it's hard not to love the life that you live, which is exactly what Brooke does. A centric event in Brooke’s life that she will never forget is when she broke her arm twice in less than one year. The first time she broke her arm it came as an accident when Brooke was in the third grade, Brooke naturally, because of her love of adventure, fell off of a rock climbing wall in third grade. The funniest part about Brooke’s story was that she didn't even know her arm was broken at the time. Brooke went without knowing that her arm was broken until she broke her arm again and made a visit to the emergency room. The doctor pulled up an x ray of Brooke's arm and showed her where her bone had been fractured and how it healed. Before telling her that segment broke her arm for the second time in the same exact place. The second time Brooke broke her arm, she fell off of a scooter. Because of Brooke's active lifestyle it didn't come as a surprise that she may have broken a few bones throughout her lifetime. Brooke is also very very big on horseback riding. She loves horses and has been riding them for as long as she can remember. In her free time you can find her as close to horses as she can be. Another thing that Brooke enjoys is hiking and fishing.
ReplyDeleteFoster Dore can easily recall a specific day he came home from school when he was younger. Foster came into his home on a normal day in New Orleans, Louisiana, when he was just seven years old. Foster recalls hearing much discussion specifically involving evacuation. “Evacuate” just didn’t make sense to Foster, being only 7 and never experiencing that word before. Confused, he tried to piece it together, understanding there was a hurricane headed towards his childhood home. The one thing Foster couldn’t understand was why he had to leave, though encouraged they would be taking a small vacation. Foster packed his bags with enough clothes for a week, still remembering the school he would be missing that next day. It was a hard concept for a 7 year old to grasp. Foster and his family stayed in a hotel in Biloxi, Mississippi, watching the destruction happening in his home town on the TV, though not completely safe from the storm in Mississippi. A week later, Foster headed home to a sad scene. His home was no longer the same from when he left it, roads being blocked by power lines, trees, building pieces, and lots of debris. The destruction was so horrible, Foster had to attend school in Virginia solely so he could pass the second grade. His childhood home was ruined and he was unable to see his friends. Foster went through an extremely hard event, shaping the person he is today. Hurricane Katrina changed Foster as a person, creating a mature, strong individual.
ReplyDeleteThe greatest impact in Andrea’s life was her surgery. Her mom was born with a minor case of hip dysplasia and got it fixed with a cast at birth. Since the deformation can be genetically transmitted, Andrea was born with a more severe displacement. Hip dysplasia is a misalignment of the hip joint. Similar to her mom, the doctors tried to treat it by placing a cast when she was a baby. Unfortunately, the results didn’t go as planned and her hips never fully developed correctly. When she came to the US, she found help with Dr. Storer, a Pediatric Orthopedic Surgeon at Joe Dimaggio Children’s Hospital in Hollywood, FL. They told her that she needed to do the surgery or she’ll suffer through hip pain, through pregnancy and as she gets older. During the summer of 2008, at ten years old, Andrea went through a four-hour surgery on her right hip. A month later, surgery was performed on her left hip. She got to go home two weeks after each surgery. It took her all of summer to heal. She rapidly went to physical therapy to basically learn how to walk again. She entered fifth grade on a wheelchair and slowly transitioned to crutches. The doctor told her it would take about 4 years to fully heal. But, two year later, the doctor found out that her left leg was growing faster than her right, so she had to go through another surgery. They had to drill her left knee to slow down the growth and even out her leg length. She’s now fully recovered with five scars from the surgery and a “penguin” walk that’ll always stick with her.
ReplyDeleteOne of the most eventful years Marissa has experienced in her life so far was her senior year at John Caroll Catholic High School. Despite already being a part of her school’s choir, Marissa also enjoyed acting and was active in the theater department. During her senior year, Marissa was cast to play the leading role as Anne Frank in her schools’ adaption of The Diary of Anne Frank. Of course, as excited and as honored as she was to take up the challenge of being the main character in the play, Marissa also felt the weight of all her responsibilities. According to herself, for a while during her senior year, Marissa’s life consisted of school, choir rehearsal, and then play rehearsal. Marissa’s role as the leading lady in her play called her to learn 8 whole monologues, on top of all the other lines she was scripted to have during the play. Adding even more pressure onto Marissa was the fact that during the whole play, no cast members were allowed to leave the stage. The set had been made to look like the annex that Anne and her family, along with another family, hid in during WW2. As exhausting as it was to be “on” the whole show, Marissa did admit that it really helped her stay in character. The local Jewish and Holocaust center even came to watch. What made this whole experience even more special to Marissa was the fact that in the crowd was an actual Holocaust survivor. After the show, the old man, named Herzel went backstage to tell the cast and crew about his life during the Holocaust. While telling his story, Marissa and the cast noticed that Herzel kept repeating the same part of the story over and over again and nobody could understand why. Finally, the discovered that Herzel had actually been having a stroke and nobody knew it. All this made senior year one of the most memorable parts of Marissa’s life.
ReplyDeleteMr. Ryan Moots has certainly had an eventful life, but he has said that one of his most fascinating experiences was his joining of a school band program. He stated that it has had a huge impact on him and his enjoyment of music.
ReplyDeleteWhile still in high school, Ryan was approached by his then-girlfriend and his best friend. They both informed him that he should join band, thinking he would be great at it and have much fun with learning to play an instrument.
At the time, Ryan had little to no musical experience with playing musical instruments and the idea of joining the school band had probably not crossed his mind. Deciding to try something new, he eventually agreed and ended up joining his high school drumline.
He began by playing auxiliary percussions and the symbols. Soon, he fell in love with his newfound hobby and continued to play in his school band, making for a great experience in high school. As Ryan continued his newfound interest in musical instruments, he went on to play marching base and performing snare in the band.
Continuing on with his passion for playing on the drums, Ryan also performed ensembles duets, and solos at his school. One of his performances impressed so much, that it earned a superior rating in one of the band competitions. These accomplishments and experiences in high school have had a profound influence on Ryan, as he still continues his hobby of jamming on the drums today.
Sophia Wennin has done very many interesting things from which I can choose to write about for her story, such as going to Amsterdam and going to Germany among other things. However, one of the most interesting stories is the story of how her grandparents met and how she is here today. Her grandfather left Germany after WW2 and went to Columbia where he stayed in an apartment. The woman who owned said apartment was pregnant and struggled to figure out what to name her baby. She decided to name her baby Ernst after Sophia's grandfather, which would unknowingly become a form of foreshadowing for the future. Later, her grandfather went to a club to go dancing with some friends. He saw her grandmother there with all of her friends and tried very hard to impress them; however, her grandmother thought he was somewhat of a loser at the time. He liked her and recognized that she was wearing a bracelet with her name on it. Even later, Sophia's grandfather and his friends were playing with a ball on the beach. They accidentally hit a girl with their ball and when he went to get the ball, he noticed that she had the same bracelet and that it was Sophia's grandmother again! Even though they did not speak the same language, they went out on a date together and eventually were married and had children. Surprisingly enough, their daughter(Sophia's aunt) married Ernst, the baby who was named after Sophia's grandfather.
ReplyDeleteA major event in Ariana Cordona's life was taking a job in Quincy, Florida to assist with children who has special needs. Throughout Ariana Cordona's life she enjoyed helping people that could not help themselves. Having a younger brother to always prevent her older sister from being too controlling over them made her the perfect middle child. When it came to giving gifts she always goes for the most heartfelt way possible, such as baking cookies for her good friends. It was only natural that she would want to show this type of love and adoration to kids with special needs. Her longing to do so is apparent, due to the fact that she drives 30 minutes everyday to see the smiles on their faces when she teaches them a math lesson. Whether it is reading a book or showing them how to write, she gains happiness through other peoples happiness. We see this at her other job working at Titus Gym, aiding kids who struggle with obesity. In their time of need, she is there to provide her unrelenting support and compassion. She gives these kids the encouragement and strength to reach their weight lost goals. Often time she finds the kids too tired or too down on themselves. However, she always has an encouraging word to say that brightens their day. The same things can be said about the school she tutors at. Due to special needs, the kids often find it difficult to solve a problem for themselves, but Ariana Cordona assists in putting them in a place to help themselves and push their selves past their limitations.
ReplyDeleteAfter being born and raised in this vibrant college town and state capital, Sarah Mattis found herself moving five and a half hours from Tallanasty to Fort Myers after middle school and began her next four years at Fort Myers High School. Sarah moved with her older brother and mom and was thrilled to call this beach town full of sunshine and snowbirds her new home. Even though she attended all private schools as a child, Sarah continued her academic journey in Fort Myers at a public school as part of their IB program. Luckily, moving to a new city didn’t stop her from finding her closest friends and doing what she loves which is singing and theater. Marching band on the other hand was not quite her calling, but that just solidified her love for classical music and singing in choir. Being a part of her high school choir she had the opportunity to visit and perform at Carnegie Hall in New York. Choir has remained a part of Sarah’s life here at FSU and she loves having a job singing in her church’s choir 2 days a week. As she lived in Fort Myers, Sarah kept finding more reasons to love the new city a little more than her hometown. She even met her best friend, Kaylee, because of her family’s move. While it was hard for Sarah and Kaylee to separate when college came around, Sarah is just happy that her BFF is enjoying the blue and orange swamp in Gainesville. When she lived in a city near beautiful beaches, Sarah and her family loved to be out on the water and would go sailing with their neighbors on the weekends to soak up the south Florida sun.
ReplyDeleteAshleigh Forehand has wanted to attend Florida State for years, but that wish is not necessarily what prepared her for making such a smooth transition to a new environment with 40,000 students and mostly new faces. The college transition is not always easy and students often struggle to feel comfortable for some time before finding the place they belong and a quality group of people to spend time with. Ashleigh did not have much struggle with this because she has mastered changing schools, making friends, and feels totally comfortable in somewhat unfamiliar situations. The reason she does not shy away from this new challenge is because she has been in it before. Before her family moved from Virginia to Florida, they moved around in Virginia, a lot. In a span of five years, Ashleigh attended five different schools. The ability to adapt to new surroundings without much trouble is a very important skill to have and will help Ashleigh be successful in all of her life. The same skill that made her transition from high school to college an easy transition will also make her transition from college to the workforce an easy one. Ashleigh will be successful for the rest of her life because since such a young age, she has understood why people struggle in the hard situations they find themselves in. While Ashleigh isn’t entirely sure what she wants to do in the field of family and child sciences, I know she will do a great job because she will understand a lot of the uncomfortable situations children face when they find themselves far outside of their comfort zones.
ReplyDeleteWhen Angelie moved from Miami, where she has resided for almost the entirety of her life, she found this moment significant. She was not scared, but instead she was shocked. What shocked her the most was not the difficulty of the curriculum, or the sizes of her classes, but the way in which students seemed to care so little. One of Angelie’s first classes was CGS, which has a substantial class size. She would watch as at least 10 kids rose out of their seats and walked out, not even 15 minutes into class. The professor did not even give this acknowledgment. Angelie was also overwhelmed by the variety of majors and organizations, because just like any of us Angelie was trying to find herself in such a challenging and new environment. She had stopped cheerleading and didn’t immediately join any groups, as she wanted to grow acclimated to her surroundings and adjust comfortably in her academics first. However, it did not take Angelie too long to grow comfortable in her new home. As a CARE program student, she interacted frequently with many new students and made many new friends. Before attending the university, Angelie considered herself more exclusive socially, because she had a simple friend group in high school. However, now Angelie considers herself more open with new people who have different social preferences or diverse upbringings. She is currently in her 3rd semester of college and has found that she has adjusted quite well, she plans to join more organizations next semester.
ReplyDeleteDavian's transition to college wasn't an easy one. Like many people, going to college is a huge event. It's a completely different world, different from anything he's ever known. He first arrived during the summer, not long after high school, and he mainly kept to himself the entire time. He didn't go to parties or any events, but decided to be immersed in his studies, earning very high grades. He was quite pleased with himself. College was a new environment for him, and there were so many people. All kinds of people he never thought he'd cross paths with, but he did. He learned not to judge anyone, because you never know what they're going through. He's still reserved and to himself, but is open to any friendship that may develop over the course of his undergraduate years. He is currently majoring in Sports Management and excells in all areas. Most importantly, he's learned to stay grounded and be humble and not to get distracted because he has many goals and will do whatever he can to reach them.
ReplyDeleteAudrey Lugo
ReplyDeleteIn her junior year of high school, Colleen was given the opportunity by her choir to take a trip to New York City where they would perform and explore the city. At first, she was a bit nervous because she had only known Tallahassee her whole life, and had never left home without her family. However, everything changed when she got to New York City. On her flight to the Big Apple, she had a window seat and got to witness New York City's skyline as the sun was rising on an early spring day. It was love at first sight, and she knew she was going to have an amazing trip. When her choir landed, they went straight to rehearsal, but afterwards they got to explore the city a little. Colleen loved the way the city felt, how big it was and the hustle and bustle of people and the abundance of skyscrapers. When the night time came, Colleen and her choir friends got to go see musicals on Broadway, and on her first and favorite night, they saw the Phantom of the Opera. After just watching her first Broadway performance, Colleen's love and appreciation for musicals was sparked and she knew her life would never be the same without it. In addition to Phantom, Colleen's choir got to watch another 5 musicals, and she loved every one of them. After watching a Broadway performance on one of the nights, they went into FAO Schwartz and Colleen danced on the piano from the musical "Big" and she had so much fun that she felt she was part of a movie. On her final night in New York City, her choir performed at the John the Divine cathedral and it was one of the most life changing experiences of her life. Colleen's trip to New York City with her choir was a very special life event that she will never forget.
Quentin went to Nova for all four years of high school. In his time there he joined the engineering club. His most memorable moment in his life so far is when he graduated from Nova High School in 2016. Not only was this a huge accomplishment and proud moment for himself, but it was also a great moment for is family. Quentin is the first generation in his family to attend college, so once he was admitted to Florida State University it made the event even grander. He carried over his love for engineering and computers to Florida State. He is now majoring in Computer Science in college. In his spare time he enjoys watching videos to help educate himself on computers and science. He is extremely lucky to be majoring in something he is so passionate about. After undergrad at Florida State, he hopes to obtain a job or internship in the field of computer science, such as programming computers. So far in his short 18 years of life, he has already accomplished so much, and will continue to do so through out his life. Being the first to graduate high school and attend college in his family is such a rewarding feeling knowing that he is changing things forever for his family. Quentin is constantly making his family proud with everything he has accomplished, he is holding his family name up high.
ReplyDeleteColleen Towey
ReplyDeleteDance has always been a major component of Audrey Lugo’s life. She began dancing as young girl, training in many different styles and even going en pointe. Of the memories that shaped her the most as a dancer was about 6 summers ago. She was 13 years old, a time where most young girls are only thinking about how to rid their face of acne or get a boy’s attention. Not Audrey: at thirteen she was an aspiring ballerina. She was invited to a six-week long intensive at the Joffrey Ballet School in New York City. This was a huge deal; only the best of the best young dancers get to go to such a prestigious program. She and her mother traveled up to NYC that summer, leaving her dad, her brother, and her beloved dog behind in Miami. They stayed in a small New York apartment as Audrey attended ballet classes every day. She reflects on this time as a humbling experience; it was a time to learn that there will always be someone better and that she should always keep working. Those six weeks of trying to succeed as a dancer in New York really shaped her as a dancer and inspired her to always work hard, be humble, and balance her time wisely. She uses the lessons she learned at the Joffrey Ballet School not only in her dance career, but in her everyday life as a student, an aspiring physical therapist, a sister, a daughter, and young woman.