Narrative Essay

The Most Significant Experience which Made Me Who I am today.

Life is an opportunity. It is a cycle of most valuable and treasured memories that even a ninety year old and a crippled person will not be able to erase and forget. It is an endless road that is full of laughter, sweat, tearful and most of all loneliness. The land was extremely barren for my eyes. The blue angry waves of the sea made me feel so anxious to paddle my daddy’s canoe to collect sea urchins and sea cucumbers, that I could sell to earn a little bit of money to feed my firstborn three months old baby.
I was employed as a teacher while placing my baby into preschool since there was no Daycare on the island. I had committed to an extra task like waking up in the early hours to fry pancakes to sell in the school in order for me to support my daughter and family, since teaching was not providing enough to assist me financially. Facing the hardships in growing up in an undeveloped island was a great challenge for me, because all we depended on was our land and sea.
Being a student in an American Territory was always a go getter attitude for me, which I learned that time and tide waits for no man and that I could overcome any obstacles before me and strive higher for the betterment of my future. The many challenges I encountered while nursing my three-month-old daughter made me a stronger person, teacher, sister and a mother. The lectures and the strong encouragements of my parents made me appreciated what I can accomplish each day.
Life was tough and there will always be challenges. The waves of trials and tribulations tossed back and fourth, trying so hard to destroy what is install for a bright and fruitful future. Somehow, I ended up caring for my elderly parents, and then I was blessed with another child on the way. Never ending questions were constantly awakening me on how to cope with living financially. While catering to my own children and caring for my parents who were slowly aging was almost unbearable. In addition, my other half at the time did not fork out resources to support our family financially. It took me a while to fully understand the problem; he was not aggressive to knock and exhaust opportunities to make ends meet. He was very different from me.
Seeing that was the father of my children’s motivation in the lifestyle we have agreed to expect, this made me turn like a wingless bird. Apart from teaching I was able to make all sorts of goodies that the school children enjoy to sell in order to make an extra income to care for my family. I saw no bright future in the island, however my upbringing in the island gave me experience and a heart of a warrior that can overcome any obstacles.
Nothing was going to tell me that I would not survive. I would already be making half of someone’s salary by 7:30 in the morning, by selling pancakes, ice cakes, egg and spaghetti toast sandwiches, the cheapest candies that I used to buy from O & O Enterprises when I travel to American Samoa. Although it took up a lot of time and effort but what I was receiving in return was rewarding.
Imagine a family of six, which consisted an unemployed husband, two children, elderly parents and a student that we take care of during school days and there was only one warrior that provided bread and butter for the family at the time. Instead of the rest of my siblings that were scattered around the world taking care of my parents, I was the one that sacrificed everything and migrated to the island to care for them.
My three children grew up in the island respecting our culture and appreciated whatever was given to them. Each of my sisters and brothers were raised to live independently in which I am forever grateful for my parents for preparing us to excel in life. Experiencing a rough beginning in the islands while rising up children at the same time somehow motivated me that there is nothing in this world that I cannot accomplish. Where your heart is there will always be your cherish was one of a my mothers favorite quote that she would always throw to encourage me and be able to conquer life.
The difficulties and struggles in the island were not there anymore when my firstborn daughter graduated as a Salutatorian in High School and is now serving in the United States Navy. Whereas the second child is awaiting her results from the University Entrance and will be employed with the Commercial Bank of Samoa once out of school at the end of this year. They were surely proud of being raised in the island, which has made them treasure the importance of our family and culture values. On the other hand I am still caring for my parents whom our family recently celebrated there eightieth birthdays this year. At last seeing the rewards of my struggles and frustrations in the beginning of a new life has made it my most significant experience, which has made me who I am today.