When I was younger, I was asked too many times “What do you want to be when you grow up?” Well, the answer at the time was “a firefighter,” and then a couple years later the answer changed. And it changed. And it’s still changing. My outlook on life has seen many changes. I was born a blank canvas and now I’m a teenager with many added embellishments.

My childhood was a fun one, sometimes strangely and frighteningly confusing, but a good one. I was an only child and spoiled. I got everything I could ever want, like my coveted metal detector for one Christmas (that I used maybe twice) and shopping sprees that ere part of my exciting schedule. I was thrilled about the little things: a new episode of the Rugrats or the Gullah Gullah Island movie airing on TV.
School was a lively place, jam-packed with best friends, field trips, and yes, even books! GT field trips were always something to look forward to, from the trip to the Chesapeake Bay to the experience at Crockett Park just down the road. But, the library was like an airplane ready to take me anywhere I wanted to go. I could jump into a novel and go to Japan or into a newspaper and back to last week in Midland, VA. The possibilities were endless. This was what I loved, however, and how I spent my time.
I was a child who also learned from mistakes, not from being told what to do. I figured out when to take care of myself, but also when it would’ve been smart to listen.
I had to take care of myself that time that my uncle left me in the yard alone facing a Rottweiler, when he knew that the dog was not friendly with people who had little experience with dogs. He left me standing there in the yard dumbfounded until I turned around and saw the scary, bloodcurdling animal less than five feet away from me. Luckily, I got out of that experience alive by running across the yard, but not forcefully as to show fear. I altered myself after that moment and became an independent girl who looked after myself and didn’t depend on others to tell me about danger, even a mad Rottweiler. I had to take care of me.
So, I’ve had to learn the hard way about some things. Like all children, I had to experience that the oven really is a hot appliance by sticking overexcited, anxious fingers on the front burner. I had to learn that paper really does burn, and that touching a newspaper article that was on fire is no laughing matter. Fingers singed, body shocked by the intense pain, I ran across the acre-long yard to the house, only because I didn’t know what else to do. I also had to learn that ice shavers and blades really are sharp. Trying to be a big girl and clean-up from my mess, I thrust my uncovered hand into the shaver. Not smart, I discovered two milliseconds later.
I was slit and nicked a lot as a child, but I was slowly stitched and mended to become a person who learned that maybe it was a good idea to listen to parents and grandparents and those in control (well, maybe not uncles) (Sewing Web, par. 17).
These days, I have a lot more responsibilities. I have morphed into a teenage girl, no, a young woman with a steady income, a reliable source of transportation, and sights set on doing great in college. I have to maintain homework, projects, and try to keep the house clean, even though chores are a pain. The transformation had been challenging but seamless.
I still have fun, though throughout this quest for my identity (Bellows, par. 2). Fan-filled basketball and football games occupy my schedule throughout the winter and fall. Cookouts and family volleyball pickup games fill my summers. So, my schedules have changed. They’re a bit fuller, a little more exciting. My outward appearance is constantly transforming, too: preppy this week, a little more casual next week, dressy another week. I’ve morphed from a girl sporting over-sized overalls or baggy pants and a T-shirt, into a teen decorated with brand names and oversized earrings.
You have to be mended from your mistakes, become embellished with new things, and stuffed with memories and learning experiences.

Works Cited

Bellows, Amy. “PsychCentral.” Your Teen’s Search for Identity. 22 June 2007. 10 April 2009. <http://psychcentral.com/lib/2007/your-teens-search-for-identity/.>

“Sewing Web.com.” The Sewing Dictionary and Glossary. 22 Jan 2004. Sewing Patterns.com. 10 April 2009. <http://www.sewingweb.com/dictionary/>