Nine years old.
At that age, most girls worry about little things- printing their back-to-school shopping list, or sleeping with all of their stuffed animals at once so none of their feelings get hurt. When I was nine, I was worried about dinner, if we could afford it, and how I was going to tell my friends they couldn’t come over to my house anymore. Of course, at that age, my innocence shielded me, and I wasn’t fully aware of what was happening.
Daddy didn’t have to work anymore! Week-long sleepovers at Nora’s house! Free food from the church down the road!
Honestly, homelessness was very exciting to a little girl. At least for the first few weeks. But as we moved from house to shelter, to house, to shelter, it wasn’t very fun anymore. My parents started arguing, then fighting, then crying, and it was all so much for a nine-year-old to handle. I thought they didn’t love each other anymore, and I cried myself to sleep thinking they were going to divorce the next day. I started working for neighbors- taking care of pets, mowing lawns, cleaning, etc. All of my hard-earned money went to paying for my family’s meals. My childhood had been taken from me, ripped from my hands in an instant. During this time, my adolescent brain looked for a way to escape.
With no house, nature became my home. I spent my days on walks in the forest, picking blackberries, climbing trees, and catching frogs in streams. I explored abandoned houses and wondered if little girls like me used to live there. I wondered if they were taken from their homes, too. I made flower crowns and snuck into gardens, watching cucumbers and tomatoes grow. I no longer felt alone, because everything around me became my friend.
Days turned into weeks, weeks to months, and eventually turned into three years. My family slowly began crawling back up above the poverty line. They started their own businesses, which began taking off. Soon, we were able to go to the store again instead of the food pantry. We could each have our own plate instead of sharing servings. We could go on house tours and find a new place for all of my toys.
Today, I am seventeen years old. My family and I live with my grandmother. I worry about paying for college, finding a house of my own, and how I am going to afford adulthood. Ironically, when these thoughts come to me, I get transported back to my childhood. Though I am no longer houseless, my mind still carries habits and behaviors from when I was.
I want to use my experiences to help others. Today, 12% of Americans and 14% of North Carolinians live below the poetry line, and these numbers are climbing. Nothing prepares you for being homeless, and it is such a deep hole to try and get out of. I plan on getting my real estate license when I turn 18, and attending college. I'm studying business and environmental science, much like when I was a kid, working for my neighbors and spending days in the forest. I am starting my own company that takes a monetary percentage from houses sold and uses the profits to create sustainable tiny homes for houseless people. The only thing I want to do in my life is help people, and I can’t wait for the day that I meet a nine-year-old girl, hold her in my arms, and tell her that she has nothing to worry about anymore.
One of the most unique things about me is my dedication. I have been a cheerleader for the past five years, and it is my favorite thing in the world. However, I did not always feel that way. In the sixth grade, I tried out for the middle school squad on a whim, simply because it looked fun and a few of my friends cheered. During the process, I realized that I actually enjoyed the things I was learning and doing. I did not make the squad that first year, and that rejection was absolutely devastating. I then decided that I would do whatever it took to improve myself and make the team the next year. This decision was a crucial factor in the way that my life would play out from that moment forward.
I began a quest to learn as much about cheerleading as possible by reading articles, memorizing videos, and taking notes at football and basketball games. At the advice of the school’s cheerleading coach, I stretched and conditioned daily, challenging myself to attempt my splits every night before bed. I practiced jumps, kicks, and cartwheels on my driveway every weekend and even joined the cross-country team at my local YMCA to improve my endurance. I had never before been so singularly devoted to a cause.
I was successful in the next year’s tryout, but I did my best to continue improving myself and avoid becoming complacent, continuing to practice everything from advanced tumbling skills to the ability to smile straight through a three-hour game. All of this dedication paid off when finally I achieved my ultimate goal of becoming a member of the Alexander Central High School varsity cheerleading squad. Even after suffering a torn ACL that required surgery with an arduous recovery process and no promise of returning to my previous skill level during my junior year, my intrinsic dedication helped me to put my all into my physical therapy and allowed me to return to athletic activities with no restrictions after only six months.
I am living proof that one small event can completely change the trajectory of one’s life. Had I not experienced a fateful failure at my very first cheerleading tryout, I would not be the cheerleader and the person that I am today. I attribute my dedication to that event, and that dedication has allowed me to be voted senior captain of my squad, be recognized as an All-American Cheerleader by two different organizations (NCA and UCA), and help my squad win our program’s first-ever NCCCA State Championship, all after overcoming a serious injury.
I believe that his drive will help me to give back to my community once I have graduated college. I have been accepted to The University of Alabama and The University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. Both of these excellent schools offer an accelerated master's degree program in nutrition that allows graduates to take the exam to become Registered Dieticians when they graduate. As a Registered Dietician, I will be able to work at a hospital, school, or assisted-living facility as a consultant who helps individuals understand their unique nutritional needs and come up with a plan that allows them to both meet those needs and enjoy their daily meals. This is no easy task, as the things that people should eat and the things they want to eat are often at odds. I am confident that my dedication will allow me to conduct research and find creative ways to satisfy my clients and make sure that they are happy and healthy.
