Psy_230_Personal_Narrative

Personal Narrative 1 Final: Personal Narrative PSY 230 Ivan Harrell Axia College University of Phoenix Personal Narrative 2 I have made the monumental crossover from my teens into my twenties, and throughout these seemingly short years I have seen myself evolve in many ways. Some may argue as to what stage in life a person experiences the most changes. I would have to say that I believe that the transition from adolescence to adulthood would be the winner. Twelve years ago, when I was sixteen, I had a completely different personality. I also had a different world view, and my purpose and meaning in life have changed as the years have passed. As a 16-year-old teenager I had many irrational aspirations. I wanted to go to the most expensive colleges, I wanted to travel the world, I wanted to put off any serious relationships until after I had done the previous two things, then I wanted to settle down, get married and begin to start a family before I was thirty.  Needless to say this is not what happened. I met a young man when I was sixteen years of age in the summer, shortly before my junior year of high school, and it was love at first sight. This young man lived an hour away from me, so seeing him was quite the challenge. My goals that I had made for myself had now become unimportant; he was all that was important in my life at the time. We struggled to see each other throughout the school year, which was usually once a week and on the weekends if we were lucky. Because of our love for each other, at the end of my junior year of high school we made arrangements with our parents for me to stay with his family for the summer, sleeping in separate bedrooms of course. Our families were both religious and did not feel that the church would approve of us living under the same roof but, they agreed upon it because they knew how much in love we were. Personal Narrative 3 The summer was near ending and it was time for me to return home for my senior year of high school. We both became sick; we did not want to leave each other. We did not want to be apart again or ever again. We talked to both of our parents and finally convinced them to let me stay with his family and complete my senior year through home-schooling. Again, both of our parents are religious; mine being catholic and his being Baptist, so it took a lot of convincing. I completed my senior year and received my diploma along with working a full time job my senior year. I continued to live with him after I graduated but, now we lived on our own. We continued this for a year and then decided to marry that following August. I was almost nineteen years of age and he was twenty years of age. We were happy for the first couple of years but, then things started going downhill and did not find the way back up. We split shortly before my twenty-second birthday. We tried to make amends but, there was just no turning back so, we finally divorced. If I knew then what I know now, I would change this part of my life and do things differently. I would not change meeting him or even marrying him. I would do is make my goals stay my priority and I would have stayed in high school. I did receive a great education my senior year and I did receive high grades but, I missed out on events that I can never get back such as, prom and graduation. I can say that this is the biggest regret of my life. I would also go on to college and get my education instead of rushing into adulthood when I was still a child. The act of forcing myself to grow up so quickly resulted in my rebellion as a young adult. After he and I split up I began to throw all of my responsibility out the window. My life that was once in complete order started to go downhill and became a disaster. I was now divorced at twenty- Personal Narrative 4 two, I had lost my job, and I was living with a friend where I became her live in nanny in exchange for room, board, and day to day expenses. My bills began to fall behind and I was getting further and further behind. This friend also went to the bar and partied, all the time. Being around this lifestyle influenced me to live this lifestyle as well; my friend was going out and partying all the time so I did also. Even when this friend stopped going out, I continued. I would go by myself and meet new friends. I am very extraverted so I met new people to go out with all the time. I continued to live this party life and finding jobs but not keeping them because the partying would stand in the way. I did meet a man while I was partying, who I dated off and on and found a good job but, I still continued to party, until I became pregnant. The pregnancy turned my life upside down. I still did not want to let go of that life but, I did not have a choice; I was going to be a mom. This was almost four years ago and as of last week I have become a mother of three. I look back and I cannot believe that in the past five years my life and priorities have evolved from drinking and partying all the time to being responsible for not only one other life but, three other lives, being a family with my children and my fiancé, and going to school to better not only my life but my family’s lives as well.