Everyday ordinary people try to achieve extraordinary goals. In Ernest Hemingway’s novella, The Old Man and the Sea, the protagonist is an old man who overcomes all insurmountable odds by capturing a great fish. Although I have never found myself out in the sea, relating to this man is easier than I imagined. The first image that comes to mind starts with my high school career and my dreams of attending college.

Where I stand today is the direct cause of the decisions I have made. Starting off high school I had a great future ahead of me. I was in sports and was a straight a student, but soon my life would change drastically. After the old man, Santiago has caught the monstrous fish his journey back home turns disastrous. The sharks of the sea eat all but the head of the fish. Just as I had aspirations of where I wanted to be after high school, my sharks turned out to be my own decisions. I moved out of my house at 17, I chose to have my baby at 17, and also married shortly after. These decisions act as sharks in the way that they deter my goals of attending college. I do not have financial support from my parents and now have to look after my husband and son. Much like the arrival of the man to his town, my future is now bitter sweet.

Through all odds I have made it this far. Similar to Santiago I have learned that although my original path to success did not happen, great things still came from it. Santiago still received the praise and admiration from the other fishermen while my future goals still seem attainable through all the obstacles that I have formed in my path.