Becoming My Identity

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There is a quote that I choose to live by that states: “Don’t let your struggles become your identity.” I have never been the type of person to let my hardships overcome the goals I trying to achieve. My parents told me they were separating my freshman year of high school, a week later my Grandmother whom I was very close with passed away unexpectedly. Following this unfortunate string of events, my life became a whirlwind over the next few years. My Dad moved to a different town, my Mom struggled with overcoming her mental health issues, and both became reliant on alcohol to get through this difficult time. Money has been very tight since their separation, so tight that they are unable to actually file for divorce. There were some nights in high school where we went without dinner and we relied heavily on our food stamps every month. …show more content…

I graduated from Waterloo East High in 2016 and my best friend didn’t because she didn’t have enough credits. Out of all my classmates, I am one of the few to still be enrolled in a four year private college despite these adversities. However, I have received very few scholarships because of many reasons including my lack of diversity as a white female. As crazy as it seems, I watched a lot of my more diverse friends turn down full rides to the college I am attending when I received better grades than them and was definitely struggling more financially. Due to this, I feel that I am one of the many students who has “fallen between the cracks” of the many opportunities provided to

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